IT would be misleading to say Brixton four-piece The Melodic are a new band but Effra Parade is nevertheless their first full-length album, although a cursory glance at YouTube will lead you to earlier treasures.
They are new in one way, however, combining folk, world beat and tropical pop under a cloudless blue sky, distancing them from the more arch Tunng or early Noah And The Whale.
America has caught on already, maybe because they have signed to the US label Anti-, home to Tom Waits and Calexico, and moved to Los Angeles and New York to busk in subways and tour non-stop for six months.
Yet Effra Parade, named after a Brixton street, is still a modern English record, fashionably folkie and DIY recorded and produced in a sound-proofed South London bedroom over several years, calling on an exotic but utterly pop-perfect collection of 18 baroque instruments to frame back and forth boy-girl vocals.
As melodic as their name, summer has arrived early.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here