NEONWAVES - 'Neonwaves' EP Review

Tracklist:

1. Version Of

2. Liars Promise

3. In The City

4. Wayside

It’s almost happenstance that I’m writing this review in Lanzarote (yes, yes I know but get to the back...there’s a long line!) because most music you come across these days sounds like it’s made by people who are resident somewhere in the Atlantic. Which is why it’s nice to hear something sung with an actual accent. Step forward Neonwaves and James Mitchell, who sings in an unashamedly Glaswegian accent which makes a refreshing change from the above mentioned mid Atlantic adenoidal warbling that seems to be foisted on us these days.

The band have just released an eponymous EP to showcase their brand of Indie Rock and build upon the success of recent live shows.

Inspired by the likes of Joy Division and Pink Floyd, you can sense these influences giving a wave in the background but keeping within the shadows and the result is an EP that’s just a festival of lush and layered sounds.

First up is “Version Of” which has a kind of cool 80’s vibe to it...both the song and James’ vocal remind me very much of The Blue Nile at their height. It’s a lush song and frankly shouldn’t make a deteriorating relationship sound so good but it does.

“Liars Promise” is a great little song...4 and a bit minutes of pure Pop with a tune that Sumner/Marr would kill to have written. Slight criticism is that the vocals blend into the background a little too much for my liking but it’s a gem of a song.

“In The City” I have to admit kinda washed over me and feels like the weakest of the tracks on the EP...again the vocals seem to float in amongst the music. And while I’ve said before it’s refreshing to hear an accent, the vocals need to be more distinct to pick out the nuances (we’ve been in Scotland for 2 years so I’d like to think I’m fairly tuned in but I struggled to make out some of the words).

Last up is “Wayside” which is carried by a nice mix of synth and guitars and bears repeated listening. It’s 5 minutes and 42 seconds float by in a kind of aural hug and you can definitely feel the Floyd influences in this one.

This is a good collection of songs...I’d like it more if the mix was slightly more vocally biased but as an introduction to the band it does make you want to hear more from them.