Two Aberystwyth products bring the big pop thrills this Thursday, and if their styles seem insufficiently analogous to you, well, that’s your problem sunbeam. Speaking of which, it’s the blue-skies headrush pop of Race Horses that heads up the bill, fresh from the release of their full-length debut ‘Goodbye Falkenburg’ on Fantastic Plastic this Spring.
It’s a far better man than me that can get through a hundred-odd words about a band like Race Horses (or indeed Radio Luxembourg, of course, their potentially lawyer-troubling original name) without mention of Gorky’s, so we can tick that box off right away. But see, the album sessions and bursts of regular gigging have seen them become absurdly tight and streamlined pop goldmine live, with a succession of three-minute gems redolent of Hamburg Beatles, the Nuggets box and Sixties-obsessed Scouse lost hopes the Stairs too. The garage-pop whack offsets the kaleidoscope psychedelia and sticky harmonies of the slower songs to a tee, all delivered with cheeky style.
Still no more than a dozen gigs old, Love Parry III flaunt their own pop sensibilities in very different but no less effective ways. The alter ego of ex-Hot Puppies songwriter Luke Taylor, LP3 represents a continuation of the pop suss and waspish lyricism of their best work, rewired to a glossy, widescreen electro-pop taking in early Prince, Berlin Bowie, girl-group shimmy and indelible R&B choruses. It’s without much parallel in a still fairly indie/rock-centric Cardiff scene, so unlikely pairings like this one will continue as the live Parry incarnation finds its feet, but that’s no reason not to revel in the incongruity and quality tunes. Debut EP ‘Race For The Poison Chalice’ will appear soon; your correspondent has heard it, and any one of its three songs would make a perfect pop A-side in a just world.
Tough competition for this one, with Owen Pallett returning to Cardiff the same night (albeit in a baffling choice of venue), but this one comes recommended for the undecided.
Race Horses – Cake (dir: Ryan Owen)
Thursday 25th March 8.00pm
Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff
£6.50 adv – Ticketweb or Spillers
