The Cast of Cheers - Family

The 2010 release of their debut Chariot drew almost no attention whatsoever and there's the horrible realisation that, had they managed to get it out 2 years earlier, they could've rode that large Vampire Weekend rise to fame with their whole jerky, quirky indie-pop shtick. The noughties saw the birth of plenty of fun electronic-rock acts (Hot Chip, Sneaky Sound System, The Go! Team), casting shrouds over the likes of Yazoo, Ultravox and The Human League and their famously moody electronica. Unfortunately, towards the end and in the 2010s especially, pouts have returned and, with a worldwide recession and tough times, seemingly cast clouds over the genre. HURTS had a well-received debut, Washed Out and The xx too, and the niche of uplifting music has been designated to the cheesy, "inspiring" and sappy lyrics that Katy Perry and will.i.am. hope to conjure.

Got a bit carried away there with lists of bands... sorry. The Cast of Cheers, however, wish to bring back some fun into music and, with riffs and scrapes tossed around aplenty, there is indeed the initial guise that fun is to be had.

It all starts so promisingly with the rather catchy 'Family', with its arpeggio riffs and a nice, bouncy rhythm - altogether not the greatest floorfiller you'll ever hear, but pretty decent for the timebeing. Similarly, 'Posé Mit' has a fast pace that's quick to enrapture, with vocalist Conor Adams doing a rather convincing Tunde Adebimpe impression - although lyrically it's tellingly vague ("there was an argument earlier on/ it was put to me earlier on"). Increasingly irritating in lyricism is 'Human Elevator', without the saving grace of an interesting instrumental to distract us with. 'Animals' on the other hand restores some sense to proceedings, albeit shortlived and bittersweet.

Because after the slightly cute and understated (although quite similar in atmospherics to Bloc Party's SRXT) 'Palace and Run', things quickly turn to shit. 'Goose' opens promisingly with folky riffs but then the whole math-rock, derivative, barked-lyrics nonsense kicks in, and it's just a sound done far better by many. 'Go Getter' sees the band relax and offer something slightly in the way of a catchy hook, but is, like the majority of Family, wrought with too many unnecessary sound effects and distractions in lieu of a decent songwriter.

'Marso Sava' really does well to encapture the whole feel of the record: total nonchalance, and boredom. 'Trucks at Night' tries in vain to kickstart the energy again but fails. 'They Call it a Race' uses cowbell for Christ's sake.

My earlier prediction that the band could've enjoyed further success had they got together earlier has been thoroughly quashed by the bland mediocrity of the album. There's not so much a lack of tunes as there is a lack of interesting songwriting, and although the sounds are quite alluring and reminiscent of many superior tracks by other artists, I just finished this album with a noncommital shrug more than anything.

Rating: 4/10
Highlights: Animals, Family, Posé Mit, Palace and Run
Avoid: Goose, Marso Sava, Human Elevator

Artwork Watch: "Diane Chambers has aged well", one woman remarked, before moving onto Adele.
For fans of: Everything Everything, Two Door Cinema Club, latter-day Bloc Party
Up next: Purity Ring