Metronomy THE ENGLISH REVIERA. Because

Metronomy the brainchild of Joseph Mount began year 2000 in the tiny, bohemian market town of Totnes, Devon, when Joseph’s Dad sold his son a computer so he could sit in his bedroom and make electronic music. He was inspired by the likes of Autechre, LFO and Aphex Twin, more as a creative hobby than a pop masterplan.

After decamping to Brighton for Uni, Metronomy released their debut album in June 2006. It was called Pip Paine (Pay The £5000 You Owe), and it’s obtuse but fascinating, largely instrumental electro-pop reflected the eccentricity of its title, and the enduring influence of Totnes.

THE ENGLISH RIVIERA is a major step up from the previous two albums so much so that I had some difficulty in choosing what to play on my radio show - it’s all good! That said, the album really comes alive with track four ‘The Look’ with its delightful accordian backdrop and rip-snortin’ melody. The whole record reflects quirkiness and warmth (no doubt from that Totnes, Devon sun…). This is a record with loads of light but mixed in are some dark, shadowy moments (’We Broke Free’) with sonic adventure never, ever too far away.

4/5

Connan Mockasin FOREVER DOLPHIN LOVE. Phantasy

Connan Mockasin started as a “blues-pop” band from Wellington, New Zealand. The group consisted of Connan Hosford (vocals, guitar), Ross Walker (upright acoustic bass) and Seamus Ebbs (drums). In 2007, the band moved from London to a village in East Sussex south of England. Ross Walker was replaced by James Milne, of Lawrence Arabia and Reduction Agents fame, on bass guitar. The band then played the CMJ festival in New York. Towards the end of 2007 Ebbs left the band to pursue his career shortly before Hosford returned to New Zealand for a national tour in 2008 with a new lineup and changing his name to Connan Mockasin.

“…current London resident Mockasin makes beautiful, off-kilter music which subverts as it compels, challenges as it mesmersies, startles as it seduces…” This is taken from the band’s PR blurb and for a change happens to be spot-on. Take for example the third track ‘Faking Jazz Together’ which includes a cocktail of musical genres and instrumental sounds. The title track has a distinctly Latin beats sound while my favourite track ‘Egon Hosford’ opens with the shrill sound of bells and ticking clocks before it morphs into something with ecclesiastical and then jazzy overtones - quite extraordinary, wholy compelling. This record is full of musicial adventure that is always accessible, always fascinating.

4/5

Treefight For Sunlight TREEFIGHT FOR SUNLIGHT. Bella Union

“In 21st century terms, no one sounds remotely like TREEFIGHT FOR SUNLIGHT. Just one spin of “What Became of You and I” will confirm their swooning, roller-coasting, jubilant sunshine pop that harks back to more innocent times. Now here comes their self-titled debut album which bottles their epic sunshine into ten pop symphonies in a compact 35 minutes.”

The band, who have known each other since childhood, hail from Copenhagen, Denmark, a breeding ground for the likes of Mew, The Raveonettes, Oh No Ono and The Kissaway Trail. In Treefight For Sunlight’s case, it’s the legacy of California’s west coast pop art, from its origins in the epic harmonies of The Association and The Turtles, which had a knock-on effect in the ‘70s with Sparks and the ‘80s with LA’s Paisley Underground scene.

Right from the start, when the two-minute overture ‘A Dream Before Sleep’ opens with the line, “All the nurses are going to leave me”, Treefight For Sunlight has you hooked. TFS have three lead singers whose imaginations are given free reign, from the concise punch of ‘Facing The Sun’ and ‘You And The New World’ to the instrumental exotica of ‘Tambourhinoceros Jam’ to the more progressive ‘Riddles In Rhymes’ and the closing five-minute epic, ‘Time Stretcher’.  This verges on the point of being a pop masterpiece.

4.5/5