Peace - Happy People

Leaders of ‘Gen Strange’, an age where oddities are embraced quicker than a charming smile, on their second album Peace have morphed from giants-in-the-making to curious customers. There’s no doubting that ‘Happy People’ has every means of turning these festival staples into a far bigger deal, but in the same regard, we’re also witnessing a transformation. Harrison Koisser’s faux fur coats are getting dodgier, and with that, the songs he’s fronting are inhabiting their own, unorthodox space.

That’s not to say this record isn’t built on hooks - big, bellowing monsters, to be exact - but without replacing ‘In Love’’s instant crush, Peace have managed to make ‘weird’ something to aspire to. Together, the four-piece dive headfirst into a world run by Bitcoins and creepy characters. Koisser sings about stolen shoes, wanting to have magnificent muscles, the “feral youth and laser guns.” In between records, the guy’s clearly expanded his mind in one way or another, and he’s close to approaching full on “everyone’s on bugle” mode at times. But that’s a plus - Peace were destined to be different.