These guys just don't stop churning out great music - their output is prolific. Since their debut album in 2018 they have released three further full studio albums and three EPs, and they show no signs of slowing down. This new single War on the Moon sticks with their distinctive sound that I still feel is of that post-britpop vibe, probably my favourite genre of music. Acoustic guitar driven (Benn Todd), with great keys/synth parts (Neil Durrant) and lead guitar (Steve Murphy), stand-out excellent basslines (Al Borg) locked in with solid drumming (Stu Neville), beautiful vocal melody and harmonies (also Ben Todd) and overall polished production that actually makes me slightly jealous (also Al Borg - Al, I may be coming to you for my next project!). War on the Moon begins with a beautiful pentatonic intro that sounds like a Timberharp (never seen a timberharp? Find Thomas Freer down at East Beach Studios in Worthing and have a look!), leading into a rhythm and chord structure reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac's Dreams for the verse and pre-chorus - an unresolved chord sequence where the chords played are the fourth and fifth, with a nice little lead guitar lick alonside the lead vocal. The song only gets to the root chord in the chorus - genius writing - and the chorus ends back on the fourth again ready for the next verse. Second time around it goes into a middle 8 section which is like a sped up version of the intro of Peace of Mind from the Strange Times album (like a little Moonlight Parade Easter Egg) and leads perfectly into a final chorus where the vocals are put through a telephony effect, ending the song with the lead lick from the verses to a fade out. Honestly it's such a great listen. I can't recommend this band highly enough, and I love everything they do. It just seems to get better and better. Catch Moonlight Parade at the Audioactive venue in Worthing on December 6th and follow them on instagram at @moonlight_parade_band
Listen to War on the Moon and more new music on my playlist: