Larrikin Love
Edwould

Sirs and Madams, it is a happy coincidence for me - the humble music reviewer - that Larrikin Love's best song is also their next single. In 'Edwould' the boys recall all the ramshackle radiance of releases past 'Happy As Annie' and 'Little Boy Lost' but hurl it back out with real poise and intent - gone are the sometimes underwhelming meanderings and fumblings cited by detractors as evidence of Albion fetishism. Yes, this is only one A-side and yes, the Clash reference is easy to spot; but Larrikin's latest gem brilliantly refracts a rainbow of influences into the white light of a band realising its potential all at once.

A fiddler tics along nervously before cutting through the hustle of Russian chimes with a natty turn of pace; and, suddenly, somehow, he's transformed into a neck-throttling electric guitarist right before your very ears! Edward Larrikin cuts this carnival short, his verse at points hinting at an internal schizophrenia to rival that of his haircut. "Confused about what I want to be/ Am I you, or you me/ A whisper shouts down most of my ego/ And so". If lyrics that continue in this vein aren't tinged with Freudianism enough already, the fiddler is buried in the woods at the end of the video. Though the song always feels like it's driving towards this conclusion, with bass rhythms simple but propulsive and drums battered relentlessly throughout, the clarity of the vocal melody hides a turn of phrase which holds attention long after the last shimmering chord is struck.

A breath of fresh air this spring, as the English weather shivers stubbornly in its Winter hangover, this rattles with the moody swagger of 'Paint It Black' and hums with the breathlessness of a teenage Coral. If I had any doubts before, they've allayed them. Long live Larrikin Love.