Ringo Deathstarr – Colour Trip

Texas based Ringo Deathstarr are the latest band of pilgrims to fixate their sound on the My Bloody Valentine sonic template, so it is with some trepidation that Colour Trip is approached. As a lover of good old-fashioned song-craft, it’s far too often left wanting for production value over homage doting, could The Pains of Being Pure Mediocre please stand up? Thankfully Ringo Deathstarr have abolished such reservations in style, scattering pop hooks and inventive melodies amongst their towering Mary Chain-esque wall-of-noise.

Do It Every Time is punch-the-air fantastic with vocalist Elliott Frazier bringing to mind the drawl of Courtney Taylor-Taylor in his heyday, but The Dandy Warhols haven’t sounded this exciting in a long, long time. The band comes into its own on the sweet pop of So High and terrific dreamy closer, Other Things, making excellent use of female bassist Alex Gehring’s gorgeous voice, layering harmonies and swapping lead with Frazier’s croon to great effect. Dare say, believe the hype. [Alan Souter]