Summertime, and the livin’ is … uneasy. Regent seem to catch the mood and catch the moment. Indie Rock ’n’ Roll to make you think, more than capable of smacking you round the chops, is what’s on offer from the Southampton four-piece who are ready to make a major mark with their debut album.
This is fairly straight-ahead stuff, some would say “old-fashioned”, but it’s entirely trustworthy, delivering what it promises as in sometimes clean, sometimes fuzzy, blues-y, guitar-driven sounds with a solid rhythm section, a swagger and a heartfelt helping of real emotion. Every revolution needs a little love.
The title track biffs and rips as it riffs. Let’s Go Out is an invitation you should never turn down, while single You Wanna Play With Me, a sneery, snarling slice of Brit Pop, finds singer Ben Rooke doing a “Liam”. Today is a diverting, atmospheric ballad. The relatively simple but superior Again and wonderfully-titled Blow My Mind also offer something of a change of pace, the latter with echoes of The Verve, dreamy and dramatic before a big geetar-solo finale. Another highlight is Rocks My Soul, a Kasabian-style rebel rouser with a nod to The Black Keys and a punch-the-air chorus, while No Going Back is a confrontational statement of intent, doomy and driven by tangible passion and determination.
Regent are Rooke (vocals), Chris Woolf (lead guitar/keys/piano), Luke Trundell (bass/guitar) and George Grattan (drums). Check it out – it might distract you from the heatwave.
Just A Revolution, by Regent, is out on Friday (August 12)