Album Review

The Lights – Low Hundreds/ Formerly Yours

• 13th May 2009

This single is a fine introduction to The Lights, who hail from Birmingham with a sound not lacking in poppy sensibility. The first half of this double A-side is the stronger, and as good a piece of guitar pop as I’ve come across recently. The male-female harmonies are something quite special on the buoyant chorus, countered effectively by angsty verses. All held together by a hypnotic, gentle riffage. Lovely.

The latter half brings you down from the mild euphoria of “Low Hundreds”; the harmonies are there and the female vocals particularly shine, this time to more minor-key ends. It’s an enjoyable enough acoustic track and testament to the songwriting abilities of the outfit, but you can’t help wishing for more of the same after the upbeat first half. Nonetheless, this is a solid effort; two very well-written songs.