Holes In The Wall

Brighton brothers Alex and Tom White may still be fresh-faced teenagers, but Holes In The Wall, their commendable debut album, could have been recorded at any time in the last 20 years. It bristles with the mysterious melodic chemistry that made Boo Radleys' Giant Steps and Teenage Fanclub's Bandwagonesque such endearingly retrodelic prospects: a wide-eyed expansiveness, a sonic playfulness, and tunes ("Start Again", "There's A Silence", "Why Do You Try So Hard To Hate Me") with hooks so immediate they swagger into your head, grab the comfy chairs and start writing out party invites before they've even reached the second chorus. While on the surface this is traditional guitar fare, beneath the veneer this bares all the subtly applied hallmarks of a rock masterwork--the work of the White brothers themselves, who undertook much of the recording in their bedroom with an iMac, a bank of vintage synths, and all manner of digital mixing programs. The next album, doubtless, will be even better. But right now, as "Silent To The Dark"--think Graham Coxon in full pop Technicolour--phases back in after five minutes of majestic electronic psychedelia, Alex White cooing "When I needed someone to talk to / You were the only one around" it's clear you'd have to have a heart of stone to not be immediately sold. --Louis Pattison

The Electric Soft Parade have made an album that surprises, entertains and, at times, makes you thankful that each year some new kids arrive on the scene with fresh ideas and clever chord arrangements which teach the bigger boys a thing or two.

"Empty at the End", for example, with its classic guitar solos and catchy chorus, is a stonkingly good indie anthem that easily sits alongside Oasis's "Rock 'n' Roll Star" and The Charlatans "North Country Boy". And after precisely three stunning minutes it segues effortlessly into another indie corker; "There's A Silence". It's a guitar thrashing, cymbal crashing, feedback climaxing belter!

The Hammond organs, the clean vocal harmonies and funky guitar rhythms evident on Holes In The Wall are not particularly challenging, but on occasion, such as "Something's Got To Give" and "Silent To The Dark", ESP produce fantastic songs with surprising confidence and style. The band don't break any barriers; much of what they have done has been done before; see Teenage Fanclub's Bandwagonesque or lesser known 90s indie kids Geneva or even Little Mothers. OK, Im getting obscure here, but as they say, if you like this then try these...

Mid-album, ESP throw in a couple of quieter ones, "It's Wasting Me Away" & "Sleep Alone"; which contrast well with the noisy guitar tunes and give the listener a chance to enjoy brothers Tom and Alex White's poignant lyrics: "This is what I say when I can't say to you, out of time, out of touch...through the dark nights we sleep alone as if all we know is true".

If this album has a fault it is that 56 minutes is a tad too long; no-one would have missed "This Given Line" or "Red Balloon For Me" had they been dropped.

You might be impressed to know that Alex and Tom play nearly all the instruments themselves and frequently exchange roles when playing live. Or you might be interested to know that the brothers produced this, their fourth album, on their iMacs, at the tender ages of 17 and 20 years old. I wasn't impressed by any of these facts, but what I do admire about ESP is that they have made a great album, full to the brim of cool n'catchy indie pop songs which will be jumping around my head, and hopefully yours, for many months to come. --Dan Tallis

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Db, DB002CDLP, Jewel Case 12 Track 2004