Alcopop Records: This drink contains alcohol

I love instances where people are investing their time and effort into independent music, often with little or no reward, so when Alcopop Records sent me 2 of their latest releases a few weeks back I was happy to give them a spin. Add that to the fact that Alcopop is sister label to the fantastic BSM (whose bands The Tupolev Ghost and Copy Haho were recently covered on Cougar Microbes) and you can understand why I was keen to dive deeper.

gofastercover

First up are scouse-core band goFASTER>> whose 5 track EP, ‘A Modern Education’, is a welcome reminder that the summer is round the corner. Imagine the melodies and immediacy of The Maccabees and the cheeky lyrics of early Blur combined. However, you’d be making a mistake to tar them immediately with the “Brit pop revivalist” brush as there are times when gF veer into the territory usually occupied by the likes of Bloc Party and Idlewild. This EP showcases the band as a prospect to look out for, now is the time to combine all these separate references and turn them into the goFASTER>> trademark sound.

My First Tooth

Fusing different influences is something Northampton’s My First Tooth do with extreme proficiency hinting at Beirut orchestrations and Bright Eyes melancholy whilst maintaining a distinctly British identity. The resulting EP ‘My First Tooth And The Rubies‘ offers spacious song structures, haunting melodies and a habit for minor key laments. Equal importance is given to strummed guitars and gentle violins (with the occasional guest appearance from trumpets, xylophones and harmonicas) to provide the melodic backing leaving the vocals out in the open to provide The impetus for the tracks. A little trick that works wonders and provides the highlights here.

‘My First Tooth And The Rubies‘ is the complete antithesis to ‘A Modern Education’ in both style and approach, but is in no way less impressive. I’m surprised more people haven’t heard of these bands but hopefully these EPs will change all that.

MP3’s:

goFASTER>> – A Modern Education

My First Tooth – Honesty Honesty

Buy these release now directly from Alcopop Records