THYLA - THYLA

At times, the eponymous debut from THYLA sounds like a crisp echo from the past, so effective are the Brighton trio at reproducing the kaleidoscopic aesthetics of ‘80s new wave. ‘Amber Waits’ is a dazzling start, Millie Duthie’s icy vocal skirting over a bubbling pot of guitar rock, ‘Gum’ slaps potent fuzz round an irresistible bass groove, and ‘Flush’ grows from a gentle ebb and flow to a crashing tsunami of anxious noise in a beast of a chorus. Patches of the record feel undercooked, though. ‘3’ is another cut whose chorus (Thyla’s speciality) is sublime, while the rest is fairly lacklustre. For how ambitious the vision here is, the final mix feels ropey too. After a little too long spent in New Band Limbo (the band are stragglers from the boom that gave us The Magic Gang, Black Honey, et al) ‘THYLA’ isn’t the blockbuster it might have been, but it sure has its highlights.