As the spray tans emerge and clothing gets smaller each weekend, so too does our taste for music drift away from Bon Iver’s mournful falsetto that accompanies a glass (or bottle) of red wine and the wintery months so well, to a happier, brighter style of pop that conjures up images of beers in the sunshine, and jolting around a festival dance floor.
deerRepublic’s debut EP The Sweet Resistance is the perfect example of a slick, well-produced indie-pop soundtrack to accompany said beers and jolting.
The opening track “Young Reverie”, invites comparisons to the Arcade Fire, although deerRepublic have more of a pop-electro bent without the folk element.
Second track ‘The Score’ has an immediate old-school funk vibe, and it’s easy to imagine the chorus lyrics of ‘we won’t stop’ being chanted by thousands, as the hook is as delicious as a rainbow paddlepop on a beach holiday.
‘Sometimes’ and ‘Two Hands’ cement deerRepublic as skilled songwriters and while neither are earth-shattering lyrically, they’re pleasant and enjoyable – kind of like a toasted cheese sandwich. Satisfying, but not a meal you’d put straight on instagram. (Oh wait, people do that. Maybe you would.)
The whole EP feels consistent, slick and professional, and it’s easy to imagine ‘The Score’ being placed on high rotation with both alternative and commercial radio stations, or being used in a new alcohol/mobile phone advertisement, ensuring it will become an instant summer theme song.
Bring it on. And get ready for the spray tans.
– Sarah Hamer
