Bristol in promising new guitar band shocker! And these guys mean business; they’ve brought their own palm tree. Together for just two years the 5-piece purveyors of ‘trop-pop’ have already chalked up an impressive 30,000 I-Tunes downloads and 300,000 You Tube views of debut single ‘Oceans’ with support from Radio One. Coasts head up a trio of talented indie-rock sets at the Louie (alongside Dive In and Goan Dogs) and after two 20+ date UK tours this year and some enthusiastic reviews, the band are starting to make some real waves.
A sun-drenched fusion of Foals, Two Door Cinema Club and Vampire Weekend they get the crowd bouncing from the start with chunky electro-rock opener ‘Wallow.’ Frontman Chris Caines, with a floppy youthful Albarn mop and baggy white t-shirt, perhaps isn’t the most imposing figure but he nails the tricky chorus and looks full of confidence in such an intimate venue. Their indie-pop sound relies perhaps too heavily on those tropical dancehall rhythms at times; wonky keyboard effects and a weak chorus make ‘Your Soul’ sound a little Maroon 5 but it’s one of few tonight that underwhelm. ‘Stone’ begins with Clock Opera keyboard precision and some nice fills from classy drummer Ben Street, now back to full health having broken his neck over the summer. Although the vocals threaten to whine, the guitars are cranked up and their California slacker sound scorches.
Imminent new single ‘Stay’ is actually the first song that the band wrote together and is a real stand-out with a Duran Duran 80’s feel that climbs up towards a monstrous chorus and Caines in familiar falsetto. With ‘hit’ written all over it you can’t help but feel that this could be the last time we see them at such a tight venue. Fair play to Coasts, with indie still languishing as a tired genre in need of a shot in the arm or a violent shake, their bouncy rock-pop certainly breathes fresh life tonight into the vox, guitar, bass, keys and drums formula.
Final track ‘Oceans’ is power-pop masterstroke that opens with resonating customary calypso Caribbean guitar from Liam Willford who rarely threatens the lower half of the fret board and Street’s shimmering drums definitely shift the tune towards glory. “We fell in love right by the ocean, made all our plans down on the sand” is the catchy mantra and there’s total crowd participation as the primarily student populated sweatpit vivaciously throws its shapes. With a tidal surge of glowing reviews and performances as tight as this one, the future looks as bright and breezy as their punchy trop-pop anthems for Coasts; surely one of
Kindly published by Venue.co.uk:
http://www.venue.co.uk/music-live-reviews-c/21310-coasts
Best Track: Click on link below
Coasts - 'Oceans'
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