Iain Archer has spent a decade knocking around the diaspora of British indie rock since leaving Northern Ireland in the early ’90s. There were a couple of early solo LPs in singer-songwriter vein and a liaison with the Glasgow-based Reindeer Section/Snow Patrol collective, but Flood The Tanks represents his coming of age. Lovely tunes such as “Not Yourself” and “Boy Boy Boy” recall the melodic facility of Yo La Tengo. But Archer’s lyrical twists make even the sweetest tune disquieting. Despite the often dark subject matter, the songs brim with an unshakeable belief in the resilience of the human spirit. Unassuming, but gripping in its own quiet way.
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