Beach Fossils - Somersault

Rating:

Lo-fi, summery indie rock.

There aren’t many bands that do lo-fi, summery indie rock quite like Beach Fossils, so it’s heartening that the band have gone back to making just that on third album 'Somersault'.

After ‘Clash The Dark’’s confused stab at a darker tone back in 2013, the band have pulled themselves right back to the centre of what made them great in the first place, making songs that are perfectly designed to soundtrack a midsummer barbeque.

Opener ‘This Year’ is a perfect example of this, Dustin Payseur’s vocals lazily drift atop a guitar line that jangles its way into your brain, it is a masterclass in indie bliss. It’s not all back to basics though, with ‘Rise’, a collaboration with Cities Aviv, providing a welcome change midway through the album, as the Memphis hip-hop artist raps over an isolated brass section and drum beat. It’s all very chilled out stuff.

‘Tangerines’ (featuring Rachel Goswell of Slowdive fame) is an equal joy to listen to, with Goswell adding just enough of a different flavour to Beach Fossils’ sound to make you sit up and pay attention, without derailing the feel of the album.

At the end of the day, ‘Somersault’ is Beach Fossils doing what they do best, with the only real forays out of their fuzzy bubble coming from guest features, rather than the band themselves. While it’s a bit of a disappointment that the band haven’t stepped out of their comfort zone more considering it’s their first full-length release since 2013, there’s enough variety on show to stop it getting boring. It isn’t going to convert many new fans to the lo-fi cause, but there’s still nothing that could better soundtrack a day in a hammock. Jake Hawkes