London-based duo Ben Moorhouse and Leo Duncan, AKA Ten Fé, are fresh-faced enough to pull off beards and long hair without looking as if they’ve been sleeping in an alley, but musically they’re indebted to much earlier generations. Madchester and Springsteen have left their mark on Hit the Light, to the point that it’s hard to identify what Ten Fé themselves bring to the party. Perhaps it’s the deftness with which they blend it all together. Each member sings lead on his own compositions, but Ten Fé are strongest when dreamily harmonising – as on the Malibu-sunset glow of Elodie – or seamlessly joining celebratory 90s bagginess and 80s rock majesty in anthem-to-be Twist Your Arm. In the most heartening sense, it speaks to the current lack of boundaries between genres, and if there are intriguing hints of drama (“I have to twist your arm to hold your arm”), that’s just another reason to listen.
