Jon Dennis 

The Drink: Capital review – infectious, intricate guitar pop

Reverberating harmonies, airy melodies and girl-group atmos characterise this London indie trio’s fine new album
  
  

Wide range of influences … the Drink
Twist and turn … the Drink. Photograph: Chris Fleet

London-based trio the Drink’s songs twist and turn, with Dearbhla Minogue’s fingerpicking guitar lines contorting into gnarled shapes that echo Tom Verlaine and Richard Thompson. Minogue’s airy voice spans a wide melodic range, her blank delivery drenched in reverb-heavy harmonies. Although retaining a foothold in indie, the Drink draw on a wide range of influences. You Won’t Come Back at All, for example, has a disco throb and an infectious chorus with organs that shift disconcertingly, while Roller recalls the Breeders or the modern psych-folk of Cate Le Bon. The repetitive chorus of The Coming Rain and the long organ chords of No Memory hint at Stereolab-like reverie. I’ll Never Make You Cry harks further back, to the girl group era of the Chiffons and the Shangri-Las. There’s a lightness of touch about Capital’s production that avoids quirkiness and allows Minogue’s intricate but unfussy guitar playing to shine.

 

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