Following the fantastic ‘Winter Nets’ EP last January, Sports Team follow up and substitute any Winter connotations for a collection of 5 tracks that you can easily imagine to be the soundtrack to British summertime.
Since selling out SCALA last September, Sports Team have come face to face with a string of career progressions that have boosted them to the front line of ‘bands you should know about’. With a trip to SXSW, and a first sell-out headline tour of the UK dominating their itinerary, you’d be pretty useless to have not heard of the inroads this band have been making.
‘Keep Walking!’ parallels these striking achievements with the band holding nothing back in single and opening track ‘M5′, resident to punchy hooks, thrashing guitars and an Albarn-esque monologue unsurprising from singer and lyricist Alex Rice.
‘Get Along’ and ‘Ski Lifts’ provide a much more personal commentary to the record, depicting narratives that frown upon the 9-5 working lifestyle and the isolation that comes with it, the latter preaching of ‘weekends in offices’ as a hindrance throughout, in a narrative that orders you to live a little before it’s too late. Accompanied by many a catchy hook, these tracks exist to prove that Sports Team are capable of changing things up, and tapping into your deepest nostalgia’s without trying to do so.
‘Casper’ flows with Pavement-esque guitars and a more melancholic tone than its ‘Keep Walking!’ counterparts. Contrasting between ‘busy apartments’ and ‘neat suburban homes’, this track brings you back to typical Sports Team stylings with another well depicted everyday British commentary fitting to that of 1993-94 era Blur.
Closer ‘Georgie’ provides a punchy end to the EP and features a story situated around a character who lives in a town they don’t resonate with. The lyrics ‘Home for me, is a constant sense that time is wasted’ rallies listeners to flee the nest and seek something bigger than what they were born into.
Overall ‘Keep walking!’ offers a suitable next step for Sports Team, proving the band has what it takes to dive into different styles with ease. Standing head and shoulders above their peers in terms of possessing a genuity in a scene that seems to lack the trait, this record is a breathe of fresh air and perfect for those that crave music with sincere unadulterated personality.
For fans of- Pulp, Pavement, Blur
Top pick- Ski Lifts
