Kid Harpoon’s folky indie wouldn’t sound out of place in the 60s yet still manages to sound as fresh and exciting, if not more so than anyone else this year. The dark lyrics, reminiscent of Nick Cave (“I’d rather eat myself alive than be shocked and surprised”) accompany quirky almost innocent, pop. Opener ‘Milkmaid’ is the perfect introduction to Kid Harpoon is a dramatic mini-opera with strings which is followed by the ho-down of ‘Fifty Seven’. Elsewhere we get bluegrass, psychedelia and electronica without the music ever sounding messy. The songs have the Englishness of The Kinks and Syd Barrett and this EP gives a glimpse of what could be the next in a line of great British songwriters. 6 tracks on a 7”! You don’t get enough of that these days and you don’t get enough EPs this good either.
