This Welsh three-piece plays insistent, mildly atonal (or perhaps simply melodic adjacent) pop with stunning verve and insouciance. The number of hooks left dangling is astonishing. The only constant is the ever-present need to press forward.

The Bug Club Green Dream in F# (self-released)

This reminds me of a much more sophisticated Capstan Shafts. The twin vocals (male and female) team up in amazing fashion, and the raggedy playing somehow makes all of this that much more accessible. Imagine Sleater-Kinney playing Buzzcocks. Something that obvious and insane.

Most intriguing is the production, which emulates the thick mono of the early 60s. With short, peppy songs like this, the first couple of Beatles albums are an obvious touch point. But all of the dumbing-down elements (including that sound) feel like self-conscious sophistication. The Bug Club could play these songs in a shiny, pretty way--and they wouldn't sound nearly as good.

Sometimes basic is just right. The fourteen songs on this album blast by in just about half an hour. And despite the intentional crudity, this is one of the defter sets I've heard in quite a while. Fun, funny and simply a blast. The sound of summer arrived early, and I'm not complaining one bit.

Jon Worley