If it’s a nostalgia trip to 2004 you’re after, then look no further than this Llandudno rock group’s debut. What The Balcony lacks in subtlety (“Craving your calls like a soldier’s wife”) and elegance (“your friends can fucking do one”), it makes up for in confidence. Well produced, its burly riffs and youthful energy recall the turbocharged feeling of a fresher’s week club night. That may not suggest the most cultured sound, but it is far from lifeless. Unlike the Kaisers and Courteeners’s success with their indie rock 2.0, there’s something more stubbornly retrospective about this album. Their passe vision is so self-assured it’s the equivalent of storming into Apple’s offices and demanding everyone forget the iPhone because Nokia 3310s are the future. Daft and dated, but with plenty of energy.
