Labels: Wolf Town DIY
Review by: Andy Malcolm
Another new UK band getting their “mo on, Courtyard help their cause by being a little bit down in the dumps. It’s taken a while, but a few new bands from these shores have decided that there is more to life than high fives and Algernon Cadwallader, they’ll probably never be that popular and have their vinyl released on 8 different colours, but thems the breaks, if you are fed up and slow then you’re probably just not going to attract universal approval.
Opening song is a trumpetmo instrumental, very nice. Quite short. Then they flow into “Lip Server”, which really stands out. The vocals drift in and out very effectively, whilst initially the guitar rolls like a train finding a steady pace. Things break down into more peaceful moments. It’s a really fine song that has me wondering if it’s safe to invoke the name of Boys Life, I don’t want to tempt fate here, and those are dangerous words to utter, but maybe, just maybe, Courtyard are headed in that direction. It kind of falls down into an odd screamy section at the end, but this is a demo. I’ll forgive them. They wind up with “Receiving”, where they wisely recruited Kai from Ten Speed Bicycle to assist. This one is actually kind of like the last stuff I heard by Ten Speed, ponderous and winding, with guitars unfurling whilst the song meanders. It’s all rather lovely, with fine lyrics.
What a good start, there’s perhaps not enough material here to form a concrete opinion, but 2 full songs that are quite different hint that there is plenty here for the band to work with. A bright future of good music and minimal popularity awaits.