You could be forgiven for dismissing the Bots as a case of style over substance. Two brothers signed to the label offshoot of US fashion/music/style rag Fader, they recorded demos with Damon Albarn and their album features production from Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Mikaiah and Anaiah Lei almost seem too pristinely cool, like Simon Cowell’s idea of what a band should be like. But when you cut through the fedoras, the shades and the impressive connections, the music stands up for itself. A mish-mash of garage rock, frenetic indie and more relaxed moments, Pink Palms starts with Ubiquitous, which recalls early Arctic Monkeys, before moving into sludgier, dirgier territory (Blinded, Wet Blanket), while All of Them (Wide Awake) sounds like it could have been written by Noel Gallagher. Sometimes their experiments fall a bit flat, but by the time the album ends, which label they’re signed to or who their mates are don’t really matter: this is simple, well-written indie-rock.
