Way back when, as the 1980s clung on by its fingertips in the face of the relentless march of a new decade approaching, the ears of the UK's music fans shifted from the long standing power base that was London, and headed up the country to the towns where vowels last a lifetime and the letter "h" is on the dole queue. Reviling in being the epicentre of the party, regional pride, something never lacking in that part of the world, soared, and, ever mindful of the opportunity to increase their earning potential, the local back-of-a-car-boot entrepreneurs seized their moment in the sun and set to task knocking out brand new t-shirts tailored to encapsulate the defiant mood - top work our kid.
Few could have been more successful than the seemingly omnipresent "Born In The North...Die In The North" manifesto, a proud slogan admittedly, but one that given the unpredictable nature of death, did somewhat limit travelling potential, not to mention causing countless panic attacks amongst fat lads from Wigan every time they choked on a sausage while demolishing a fry up in Ibiza! None the less, the point is there's cash to be made in parochialism, which is good news if you happen to be one of the four guys who have opted to call your band Northern American! So let's quickly work this out:
*mumbles* draw straight line with ruler through map of America, assume perfectly even distribution of population, subtract for some being eaten by bears.....
Right then I make it roughly 155 million people who will want a t-shirt with that name on it lads - kerrrrrching!!!
Of course in order to tap into this rich market, you first need to get your brand out there, and the Los Angeles quartet are about to put those wheels in motion with the release of their first single 'Wander' complete with it's accompanying double A-side 'Record Forever', but the burning question readers, is do this lot merit you having their badge of allegiance emblazoned across your chest? Well on this evidence, yes, there's every chance they do.
The lead-track is a toasty warm slice of semi-acoustic pop in the vein of woolly hat champion Badly Drawn Boy, coming complete with a great rolling percussive mid-section (perfect for any gym bound boxers wishing to get their fleet feet in gear) and a playful full-length sweep of the piano keys. The latter offering leans suspiciously close to space-age lounge music, but to their real credit it works fantastically, as bubbles of melody float around a slightly warped vocal with aquatics-evoking guitar and keyboard accompaniment interspersed for good measure. Taken as a pair they're suitably uplifting, extremely compatible, and a real appetite-whetter for how a full album may intertwine.
There we have it then folks - be there (here!) do that (play the track), then get the t-shirt!
Buy the single
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