Good Shoes
June 19, 2007
Good Shoes
Think Before You Speak
(Brille Records)
I can’t really say I’m a massive fan of all these new indie-pop bands popping up every other day, but Good Shoes debut album "Think Before You Speak" is making me change my mind about the 'atest sensation'.
"Think Before You Speak" combines the sounds of the new Thamesbeat scene- a mix of upbeat technical guitar pop and intelligent lyrics- and musical influences from modern bands like The Futureheads, all the way back to indie pioneers like Gang Of Four, The Jam and Buzzcocks. They have clearly drawn on The Futureheads start-stop sound and style, helped along by vocalist Rhys Jones’ singing and witty analysis of people and places.
Stand-out tracks on the album are ‘Nazanin’, a simple yet very confessional look at Jones’ self, as well as the paranoia-driven anthem of ‘All In My Head’. But I always think the best songs are those written about where you grew up. ‘Morden’ regales the bands hometown and how, although it should be a nice leafy suburb town in South West London, it is actually a full of skinheads, drug dealers, and alcoholics singing 80’s pop whilst stumbling out the pub. (I grew up near there, it’s not that bad! Z)
Good Shoes have managed to produce a very good, well-rounded first album, and sure to be around for while to come.
Tim Modridge
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