Singles

Good Shoes - Under Control

Chris Tapley 11/01/2010

Rating: 3/5

Following Arctic Monkey's rapid ascent the 2007 airwaves were over run with young chaps belting out catchy angular guitar riffs and spewing witty lyrics about the reality of inner city life with a regional accent. Most of them were rubbish, obviously, but a few of them did come close to matching the sincerity which originally made the Monkeys such an appealing prospect. For me Good Shoes were one of those few and their debut album was packed with great little indie anthems that whilst being fairly derivative were catchy and heartfelt enough for that to escape severe scrutiny.

This is the first single from the Morden quintet's much anticipated follow up No Hope, No Future, and there isn't too much sign of them crumbling under the pressure of second album syndrome. Under Control fires straight out the blocks, twisting and grinding with a frantic purpose. It's reverberating bass and angular riffs are flecked with the grot and desperation of tiny indie discos up and down the country gyrating to Rhys Jones' lyrics of young lust spiralling to uncontrollable degrees. On first few listens it seems as though it's over before anything much has happened, but on closer inspection there is some nice little dynamic shifts and switches of focus between the steadfast bass and elastic guitar lines. It bristles with an energy and confidence which was often missing from the tracks on their debut. Energy is it's main achievement though sadly and it seems to lack much in the way of substance, it's bordering on painfully repetitive and I can't see it warranting many repeat listens. It's undeniably got hooks though and along with the much better free download track 'The Way My Heart Beats' posted on their website last month it suggests that No Hope No Future could well be one of the biggest mainstream indie albums of 2010.

Release date: 11/01/2010