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by Jennifer Perkin

Former Band Of Horses stablemate gets happy

"When you find out that band leader Mat Brooke was a founding member of Band Of Horses it makes sense – like that band, these guys make thoughtful, gentle music but with a more overtly positive angle."

It is a rare thing to find sweet music that doesn’t leave you with a toothache; few musicians are qualified to handle the delicate balance between niceness and nauseous. This Seattle-based trio are among the few as their debut is nothing if not daisies-and-puppies, holding-hands-and-candy-floss sweet but thankfully never saccharine.

When you find out that band leader Mat Brooke was a founding member of Band Of Horses it makes sense – like that band these guys make thoughtful, gentle music but with a more overtly positive angle that comes through in moments like the whistling intro to ‘Miniature Birds’, or the unashamed multi part vocal harmony on ‘A Setting Sun’. Clearly Brookes has had enough of the ‘sadcore’ music he was singing with his old, pre Horses, band Carissa’s Wierd, and has hit on a beautiful thing.

Not to suggest there isn’t a gamut of emotions here; ‘Sleepdriving’ and ‘Index Moon’ are sweet only in the most heartbreaking sense, capturing the dreamy countrified sound that Band of Horses have trademarked of late and just about equalling Ben Bridwell at his own game. ‘George Kaminski’ is a gorgeous, wistful ballad designed for stargazing or at very least solemn contemplation. Yet on ‘The Crime Window’ they are bursting out of the stereo in full The Go! Team mode, all shouty vocals and singalongs while the instrumental ‘Breezy No Breezy’ is almost dub-ey.

This is a carefully studio-crafted record, the triple vocal layering has clearly been laboured over and it makes for a classic pop sound. Brooke’s effeminate vocals are gentle and soothing and above all suited to the task. It’s a lovely album with some truly breathtaking moments (‘Sleepdriving’ is the instant highlight), but their biggest triumph is in bringing some rosy-cheeked niceness to the indie rock party. And lord knows, the world could use some of that.

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