I probably listen to 15 or 20 new bands a day. Almost all of them get one listen and are then deleted. Occasionally, I’ll go back for some repeated tries and discover something I enjoy. Very rarely am I immediately struck. Beat Radio is one of those rare few. I got an e-mail containing “Treetops” and within the first minute I was hurrying to re-check the e-mail to find out more about the band.
There’s a lot of New Order here, with maybe just a hint of the good ol’ singer-songwriter vibe. And those fuzzy guitars multiply the electronic-but-organic feel. Broken Social Scene, maybe? On some other numbers, they also remind me a great deal of Her Space Holiday, with the general pattern of looped electronics and gentle acoustics over a simple drum beat.
Anyways, pick your poison for which influence seems most appropriate, but one thing is sure: every song is chock-full of hooks and is guaranteed to make you feel good about life. For me, they evoke a very particular feeling in me: an autumn day, when the first chills of winter have just arrived, not enough to make you cold, but just enough to make everything feel just that much sharper. A couple more:
Ancient as the Stars No. 2
Mexico
“Treetops” is definitely the highlight, but these other two (and the whole record, really) are great. You can check out more at their homepage or myspace.