Palma Violets -‘180.’ (Rough Trade)

So, one of the most anticipated debuts of 2013 is with us. The Palma Violets garnered lots of praise for their debut single ‘Best of Friends’ and with people being desperate for a four-piece indie band to ‘save us’ (umm, from what, exactly?) the torch has been passed to them.

Having enjoyed the single, I was looking forward to the album, and hoping that the band could deliver on the promise, with an indication of where they might develop. After several listens, my conclusion is that there are some good songs on here, and that as well as the singles, tracks like ‘Chicken Dippers’ give an indication that they are prepared, not necessarily to experiment -yet- but to vary the template a little. This isn’t a classic debut, though.

That’s not to say it’s a bad record – it certainly isn’t. It’s fun, and the band need time to develop to reach their potential. It would be nice to think they could do this in their own time, without having to constantly watch for the backstabbers who will see ever chart position and sale as something to be analysed and offered up as evidence that they haven’t cracked it.

***1/2