| Review: Shirley - The Puppet Show |
| Thursday, 05 March 2009 |
 This song is a time machine, no seriously, it takes you straight back to the early noughties, when The Libertines and The Strokes filled our ears, smoke wafted through dingy pubs and the country wasn't crunching on lack of credit. The Puppet Show is a feel good indie anthem, and despite Shirley's girly name, purveys the group's laddish attitude in every strum.
Guitar heavy, it is the rifts that magically transport you back to better times. Even if you weren't a fan of the indie revival back then this song will still appeal to you, there's even a hint of brit poppiness in its cheeky melody. The bands influences can be heard throughout the track without overbearing your ears with similarity. The lead vocalist, Barney Wilby, has an achingly cools voice that sounds very similar to Carl Barat's, along with the guitar driven sound it's his voice that make this track stand out on their new EP. With further listening, their EP demonstrates the band's ability to mix old and new influences into their sound. There's a certain American feel to their tracks but Shirley manage to keep a British stamp of approval. Brighton has been producing indie boy bands with attitude for a while now; The Kooks, The Maccabees, and now Shirley are strumming their way to the forefront (or should that be seafront) of Brighton's fines exports. The boys are playing plenty of upcoming shows in and around Brighton, it would be well worth your while catching them in the small venues before they move on to bigger things. Listen to 'The Puppet Show' Learn more about Shirley www.myspace.com/shirleyband |
