Kid Canaveral – Shouting At Wildlife

Kid Canaveral have four self-released seven inches to their name, lyrics that rhyme Smash Hits with Brad Pitt, and debut album artwork adorned with doodled cute animals. Egads, what twee nightmare lies in wait behind this squirrel sketch? None, silly: Shouting At Wildlife is a thrilling, uplifting and generally all-round spiffing combination of indie-pop skills, lyrical wit, and choruses sung through smiles.

It doesn’t quite manage twelve full tracks of unbroken charm (Her Hair Hangs Down for one is disappointingly limp), but for a good portion of its run time, Kid Canaveral deliver winner after winner: You Only Went Out To Get Drunk Last Night skips jauntily on bouncy backing vocals; On Occasion somehow sounds like a less hormone-led Scottish Blink wan-eighty-too; And Another Thing is the pick of their softer side; while Smash Hits and Cursing Your Apples provide chuckles as well as indie-disco dancefloor material. [Chris Buckle]