Formed in 2010 The Lightwings have taken a full three years to release their ironically titled debut album Sleeping Is Not For Dreamers. Throughout the record there is a strong and familiar resemblance to modern day indie that is combined with a similarly prevalent Britpop undercurrent that has given life to Beatpop; the newly conceived genre within which the London four-piece operate.
Nowhere on the record is the nineties throwback more evident than ‘I Almost Turned’ – a track that is glued within the verse-chorus form on which a meandering verse leads in to a hooky chorus, resemblant to much of Standing on the Shoulders of Giants; save for James Rowland’s vocals.
Despite The Lightwings’ adamancy that the record was largely influenced by early 60s Rock n’ Roll there is little to reflect this. Whilst isolated outbreaks of ‘do-wop’ on ‘You’re Alright’ that – when combined with a tangy guitar tone akin to that used by The Animals – does justify these claims, the record struggles to escape from the shackles of modern day indie and the result is a derivative and unmoving effort.