Tigercats: in the vanguard of the new pop army

There are way too many good records coming out all at once at the moment. I'm getting old and struggling to keep up with the pace. I've hit the pop wall. So, when I'll get around to writing about the new MJ Hibbett & the Validators and Azure Blue albums I don't really know, but I will.

For now, I've been listening to the new set of songs from Tigercats for about the past week. The rough versions of the songs (which don't sound too rough to these ears, but then I know NOTHING of the recording process) are from an album out in March (I think) called 'Isle of Dogs' that will be released (again, I think) on Fika Records.

This album reminds me of a lot of things. It reminds me of being young and hearing Suede for the first time on the Evening Session and missing my bus into Grimsby because I didn't want to leave the radio.

It also reminds me of moving in to a crap flat on Mansfield Road in Nottingham with paper thin walls (BUT WE WERE HAPPY) and playing 'Breaking God's Heart' by Hefner over and over again whilst drinking cheap wine and gin.

One song reminds me of Northside, but - hey - that's okay.

Perhaps my favourute track on Isle of Dogs is 'Banned at the Troxy' - the heady tale of a night out that sounds like something ace off the first James album. It's simple and ambitious and a little bit sexy all at the same time, and it makes me want to go out and get drunk with people I hardly know.

See, if I was 16 right now I'd think this album was sent to save my life. 'Isle of Dogs', along with the new Allo Darlin', Shrag and Evans the Death records - that's quite a quartet to impress your slightly less cool mates with. Converting them is the easy part.

What Tigercats has come up with is a manifesto for what it means to be alive, to be in London and to be living life. Like Suede did twenty (gulp) years ago, and like Hefner did a little bit later. Those other three bands I mentioned earlier are doing it to, and however old you are you should cherish these times, because they're golden days for pop.


Tigercats - Banned At The Troxy from Niklas Vestberg on Vimeo.