Shrag - Canines (Vinyl LP, CD)

Aw...poor Shrag. This Brighton girl/boy indie-pop phenomena have been criminally ignored by Norman over the years. I’m sure they sell a fair few records but it’s only recently we’ve been kind enough to bestow the odd offhand opinion upon the band, with only recent single ‘Show Us Your Canines’ getting the ReviewBot treatment [And their split with Tunabunny! - RB]. I’d like to think Shrag don’t give a fuck anyway. After all they’re on Fortuna Pop! nowadays and Morrissey’s drummer mixes their records!!! These kids have got it made.

‘Canines’ follows their debut ‘Life! Death! Prizes!’ and sees the group on fine form, mixing little social commentary with stupidly infectious melodies and topping it off with their distinctive trademark boy/girl shouty vocal style. They’re like the indietracks equivalent of Johnny Foreigner but with a better ear for a tune and an obviously more diverse palette.

Much like indiepop superheroes Allo’ Darlin’, Shrag have a good grasp on the lineage that spawned them in the first place and do their damnedest to cover the full range of styles including ‘80s UK synthpop, punk rock, glam, Sarah Records-style tweepop, indie rock, Britpop, etc, etc...

They do it really well too with ‘Show Us Your Canines’ being a fine example of their grasp on the craft of songwriting, effortlessly blending The Smiths, Human League and Elastica vibes into one dance-friendly pop nugget that I bet they go crazy for at the indie disco. And that’s just the tip, there’s plenty to get into here.