Drowners – ‘Luv, Hold Me Down’
We’re back, and I’m going to take a chance. I guess you all probably had one too many eggnogs, played out too late, and tried to cram every animal in the farmyard onto one plate. So, what you need is a Monday morning burst of airy, fresh and energising jangle pop from Brooklyn outfit Drowners.
Signed to Frenchkiss Label, they are set to release their self-titled debut with the heavy tag of ‘one’s to watch for 2014’. By the reckoning of their latest release, ‘Luv, Hold Me Down’, it seems a cross they are more than capable of bearing. Drowners are our first Track Of The Day for 2014 – ah, it’s good to be back.
Far from the sardonic Smiths-esque delivery of the previous release, EP Between Us Girls, this track shows off a seedier side to the New York boys. They’re not all Yanks, though.
Welshman Matt Hitt leads this quartet with a tip to his homeland, and a decisively Britpop decoration is added to a typical Big Apple sound. ‘Luv, Hold Me Down’ has a disco-fuelled rhythm compatible with the hum of its conception’s city.
It feels less like the bedroom wailers of Between Us Girls and more like a Jagerbomb-dropping dancefloor filler.
Having recently supported Arctic Monkeys on part of their American tour, Drowners are really starting to make a name for themselves, and it’s easy to see why. Not only do they possess all the hipster credentials that a Brooklyn postcode, a swagger and a decent haircut, but they also have the garage band sensibilities to not take those credentials too seriously. They have toned down the macabre musings of Hitt’s forlorn vocals and replaced them with a little edge and a lot more bite.
A coupling of trans-Atlantic stereotypes, ‘Luv, Hold Me Down’ moulds the definitive Britpop melody with the relentless thud of Americana to produce a shimmering indie-pop gem.
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