Do you like to check the indie credentials of your bands before buying their music? Well you can rest assured that The Spook School have never been near the charts, haven't played arena tours and probably didn't go to public school or anything as shockingly off-putting as that (yes I'm being mildly sarcastic). And try this lot for size: they're from Scotland, indiepop's spiritual home, and are releasing new EP 'I Don't Know, You Don't Know, We All Don't Know' on Scottish independent label Soft Power Records, and naturally it's a limited edition cassette and comes with a badge. Their last single was a 7" taken care of by US indiepop magnet Cloudberry Records. I think you'll find every box ticked there, but for those of us who consider the music to be the most important factor what's most notable about The Spook School is that they're flipping fab.
The quintet of tracks on this EP are resolutely lo-fi and C86 fans will get a massive fix of fuzz, melody and shambolic thrashing about, with Scottish accents to boot. 'I Don't Know' feels like a long lost relic from the mid 80s with its ramshackle jangling guitars and familiar melody. It's even got boy/girl vocals for added authenticity. It's followed by 'You Don't Know' which is kind of more of the same, except that they give the minimal production a miss in favour of no production at all. It's wonderful noise-pop, as is 'Can You Ever Trust A Man Who Thinks Matt Damon's Really Cool?' 'That's When I Ran Away' sounds more like a rehearsal taped on someone's phone than a finished song, and this is a good thing. They give a simple tender lament a go too on 'Something' and it's simply gorgeous. All your criteria are met. Now go forth, listen and buy.
The Spook School's website
Stream or buy the EP
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