one toy solider

recently i've been listening to a band i like an awful lot, and their name happens to be 'one toy solider'. they appear to hail from the rocking vicinity of northampton, a place i'd only previously known for their rubbish football team and not much else. but apparently this place has become somewhat of a breeding ground for promising new bands! thankfully this one is plenty for my plate at the moment, so we'll focus on them.

the release i'm mainly talking about is the cd-lp of "concrete smiles at the midnight hospital diner", which i picked up off of amazon for little more than a fiver. their weapon of choice appears to be a subtle blend of the pretty, excellent midwest-emo of a decade past, blended with a bit more fervour and some crunchy indie.

some useful comparisons might be in order. their influences are cited as as at the drive-in and idlewild (i can hear it, i really can!), but they retain this lovely pop sensibility. and every song on the album has a certain cuteness to it which really just makes your mind go "aaaww". as far as i'm concerned it has all the hallmarks neccessary for a good record. crunch, twinkle, the odd placed, well executed scream, and melodies that are extremely catchy, but not to the extent of being irritating.

the only downside to these guys would be the fact that they haven't had a show in scotland yet. if you're reading lads, i'd attempt to remedy this one sharpish. for now though, i reckon i'll be content shoving this record on repeat and just sitting back and enjoying how fantastic they are.

listen to them on myspace, maybe pick up their 7" directly from them
pick up their cd from amazon