The Wombats “Beautiful people will ruin your life”

The Wombats seem to have been around on the Indie scene forever. Formed in 2003 this is actually only their 4th LP. Quality is more desirable than quantity and “Beautiful people...” certainly delivers. Lead singer Murph wanted to produce an album reflecting his attempts to cut the partying and live like an adult. This is certainly less frenetic than their earlier material; the production delivers a full gutsy sound while delivering hints of underlying darkness. They still have an ear for an upbeat Indie-pop tune, “Black Flamingo” oozes a sing along chorus with an infectious buzz saw “ooo- oo –wah – oo” guitar hook. The mature sentiments also filter through amidst the twangy fuzz bass of “Out of my head” and the melancholic album closer “I don’t know why I like you”. Throughout The Wombats continue to deliver their own unique take on off-kilter classic guitar pop, perhaps best demonstrated amidst the playful swagger of “Lethal Combination”. Mature enough to tackle the darker side of life, young enough to still have fun, see The Wombats at Southampton Guildhall on 29th March, LP out February 9th (8).

Django Django “Marble Skies”

Who says Psychedelic art-rock is dead? Django Django’s 3rd album brims with more of their kooky trippy pop melodies this time with dance rhythms thrown in for good measure. Vocally they still sing with the trippy harmonies of Ian Brown joining The Byrds in the Summer of Love. Throw in out of phase keyboards and galloping guitar rhythms and you have the pop perfection of single “Tic Tac Toe”. It sounds as though these champions of the new wave of British pop psychedelia have added a 303 to their musical armoury. This is OK as a kooky accompaniment, but makes the house influenced “Real Gone” appear as out of place as “Fools Gold” did on the American version of The Stone Roses debut, out tomorrow (7).