Dustbowl Disco:
For anyone who was nostalgic for 80s and 90s indie music, but also disappointed by that genre’s general lack of Mariachi trumpets, Merseyside’s Red Rum Club have arrived at last. Debut album Matador offers ten artfully crafted rock songs, all of them intriguingly augmented with the under-appreciated brass instrument.
This isn’t pure gimmick. Every track is packed with memorable hooks and soaring choruses. Although several songs, such as Calexico and Casanova, exploit their Tex-Mex inspirations, others are pure slices of Liverpool pop. The witty lyrics and pop sensibility of TV Said So and Would You Rather Be Lonely could easily launch the group into the mainstream.
At only ten tracks, none of which exceed the three minutes 30 mark, Matador is a short sharp shock of a record, and just like a trip south of the border, a whole lot of fun.
This review first appeared in The Herald
James JW Robinson 