Here it is folks, the edgier antidote for those of you who may be disillusioned with Keane from a band the late great John Peel had a soft spot for.
‘Baby Boom’ is a haunting single with one of the most beautiful hooks I’ve heard in years. The Crimea prove that a melody can be lilting and beautiful without being limp or naff.
‘Baby Boom’ is deceptively well layered, an intricately woven tale of friendship under pressure.
Perhaps drummer Owen Hopkins says it best. He reckons The Crimea want to be a timeless band. He says they owe a lot to the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson who coined the phrase ‘pocket symphonies’.
Just because it’s a there minute single doesn’t mean it has to be less than ordinary.
And if the logic holds, ‘Baby Boom’ is a true pocket symphony.
Hopkins says they want to do something that isn’t just guitar, bass and drums. If that translates as a single holding massive musical and emotional scope, they’ve more than succeeded.
