CASTLEROCK-based indiepop troupe Brand New Friend – not to be confused with Belfast's fondly remembered early-00's melodic hardcore unit Your New Friend – recently got in touch with Noise Annoys asking it to listen to their debut EP American Wives.
I'm glad they did: the EP features five tracks of catchy strum and jangle from this worryingly youthful looking quartet, whose sound is characterised by sing-songy boy/girl vocals, occasional keys and a whimsical, heart-achey vibe that perfectly captures the bittersweet sting of teenage romance gone bad.
The title track, Settle Down and I Was An Astronaut are all shot-through with an invigorating pop-punkish energy and urgency which puts me in mind of keep-it-simple-stupid songsmiths like the Lemonheads, The Posies and even Ireland's own much-missed Power of Dreams.
Lauren Johnson takes over lead vocals from guitar-wielding brother Taylor on the swoony sad/happy I Love You, Goodbye, before the EP climaxes with the simmering, swelling slow-dance number A&E.
Having been impressed enough to check out some live footage on You Tube from a recent live show at Dicey O'Reilly's in Strabane, it turns out that these well-presented recordings are a little sterile when compared to the sound of Brand New Friend when they rock out on stage.
The band – which also features bassist Darren Hill and drummer Fionn Crossan – will be doing just that at the Stendhal Festival next month, so be sure to check them out there and indeed online at Brandnewfriendz.bandcamp.com, where the EP and a collection of early acoustic demos also well worth hearing are available to stream and/or download.
If you like what you're hearing, you can find loads more of the band's stuff at Soundcloud.com/brandnewfriend.
In other new music news, Belfast's premiere dronepop ensemble Documenta have a single coming down the pipe on local label Touch Sensitive.
You may already be familiar with Love As A Ghost, as it featured on the band's second LP, Dronepop #1, released last year.
This sub-seven minute tune is an appropriately haunting, mesmerising ditty that sounds not unlike Cocteau Twins covering OX4 by Ride with Kevin Shields on guitar duty.
Apparently, the new stand-alone version is a re-jigged and 'extended' mix featuring "additional inspiration and instrumentation" from David Holmes, the Documenta enthusiast and producer of said track who made the sterling suggestion that Joe Greene and co get Desert Hearts bassist and singer Roisin Stewart to do the breathy lead vocal.
Having now listened to both the single version and the original back-to-back several times in a row – a pretty transcendental experience, let me tell you – it's hard to tell exactly what Mr Holmes has tweaked for his revised mix, which has seemingly been 'extended' by all of a solitary second.
Blast it now at Soundcloud.com/touchsensitiverecords/documenta_loveasaghost, then spin up your Dronepop #1 vinyl to perform your own psychedelic comparison test.
You'll be able to get hold of Love As A Ghost redux as a digital download via Touchsensitiverecords.com from July 22, a day elevated to red letter status in the diary of any self-respecting local shoegaze fan by the fact that Documenta will also be celebrating their new release with a live performance in Belfast.
The show at Mister Tom's Lounge in Lavery's (the venue formerly known as The Bunker or 'the middle floor') will be a prelude to a run of summer festival dates for the band, including Kendal Calling, Electric Fields and – perhaps most excitingly of all for fans of cult classic TV show The Prisoner – Festival No.6 at Portmeirion in Wales.
The latter finds Documenta doing their thing in 'The Village' as part of a Tim 'The Charlatans' Burgess-curated bill: his Tim Peaks Diner stage (quick, sound the 'pop culture reference overload' klaxon) at the festival also features post-punk legends The Nightingales and amusingly named young pretenders Cabbage.
You can get the full skinny on the rest of the line-up at Festivalnumber6.com.
Until next time – be seeing you.
