Blitz Kids - Vagrants & Vagabonds
Sometimes, an album feels special, making you stop and just listen to the music.
Blitz Kids have achieved this with Vagrants & Vagabonds, their debut album.
It sounds like a much more experienced band, not a first album recorded and mixed in two days.
Joe James' vocals carry the album, backed by great riffs and solid rhythm to make for an excellent record.
Featuring a guest-verse from Kids In Glass Houses' Aled Phillips on the brilliant 'Story', Vagrants & Vagabonds could make Blitz Kids the best new band to hear this year.
The high-pitched riffs throughout the album give it a brighter sound, in a contrast to the darker rhythm sections lying underneath.
Throughout the album, which follows a stylistic theme, things are kept interesting with exciting, intricate riffs to make this stand out.
'Rush', in particularly, is helped with instrumentation a step above most contemporary alt-rock bands, with a catchy bassline carrying it along.
Blitz Kids show a bit of diversity with the almost Billy Talent-esque 'Bye Bye Blackbird'.
It's a shift in tempo, both for the album and within the song, that refreshes the album when it threatened to drag.
The album ends with 'When To Say When', showing perhaps the influence of Alkaline Trio on this great young band.
At only 10 tracks, Vagrants & Vagabonds manages to flow well, with no filler.
Any other band may struggle to follow up on such a high quality debut.
However, after hearing this album, it's clear Blitz Kids have all the tools to become one of the biggest rock bands in the country.
Female First - Alistair McGeorge