Bat and Ball – ‘We Prefer It in the Dark’
Some might think that a brother and sister singing a song called ‘We Prefer It in the Dark’ would be weird. Well, you sickos, you’d be wrong. It’s actually really awesome.
Bat and Ball, the sibling fronted five-piece originally from Devon but formed at Goldsmiths, are the latest indie/alternative/electronic/dubby/female lead singer band giving aural erections to the skinny jean generation. Currently clutching onto the coattails of The XX and London Grammar, a successful follow-up to their debut EP should see them wrench that coat right off and wear it proudly into the mainstream limelight.
Today’s Track of the Day, ‘We Prefer It in the Dark’, contains, but doesn’t rely on, the moody melancholy of the aforementioned bands’ most popular tracks, which is mainly down to the smooth vocals of lead singer Abi Sinclair.
Shaped from the same breath as Regina Spektor and Florence Welch, her voice is the band’s main point of difference, although she is brilliantly backed up by the stumbling riffs of guitarist Jamie Coe and the sharp-edged vocals of her brother, Chris.
‘We Prefer It in the Dark’ is a shadowy tale with seemingly confessional but somewhat cryptic lyrics. The listener is left to decipher their own story and use their imagination to paint a picture as they soak in every intriguing word. Just like indie duo Jack and Meg White, Abi and Chris rarely discuss the meaning behind the lyrics to their songs when they write them. Instead, they rely on a “telepathic approach”, simply understanding where the other is coming from. As someone with two brothers, I think that sounds like media bollocks, but it’s hard to argue when they put out tracks like this.
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