First issued in late 2022 and now back again by popular demand. And rightly so. Rarely does a record arrive out of the blue so perfectly and lovingly calibrated. The San Fran three-piece have some pedigree in their ranks (de-facto band leader, Stanley Martinez serves time in both Cindy and Famous Mammals, and i’d assume even more beside), a fact immediately obvious on first spin of a set of recordings that hit that sweet spot of pastel-hued jangle that’s as incisive as it is fey. Tom Lax nailed it down when he said he had to look twice to make sure this wasn’t a Whaam! release from the 80s. And so of course the influence of Dan Treacy is writ large – and why not! – and the references to Muswell Hill (the Beverly Muswell Hillbillies, anyone?), Jane Birkin, Paddington (the bear!) et al are present and correct in dripping rainbow streaks of traded male-female vocals, harpsichord,viola, tambourine and roughly tuned guitars. But of course you already knew all of that – read and read again that astonishing band name, look at that artwork. As Rob Gretton may have noted, here’s a band with a fine grasp of semiotics.