Can you have too much candy floss? My sweet tooth says no but my ears nonetheless said yes to something altogether less sugary such as Junodream’s debut EP “Terrible Things That Could Happen” and, while the mood set by the band is never really uplifting, there is still a notable joyfulness to be found in listening to band that is prepared to make the effort to gain your attention.
That effort is obvious in both song writing and arrangements with each of these three songs structured to soar above the mediocrity of indie rock and, while the underlying message remains resolutely downbeat, the precision and care that Junodream have put into creating such a complex ambience is meritorious in itself. The pacing of the songs is, unsurprisingly, casual yet, even with the plethora of elegantly inserted retro influences from the finer days of British popular music, your interest is never allowed to wane. Perhaps unusually for a band of these times, Junodream gel especially well with even Ed Vyvyan’s voice being fitted into the mix instead of sitting in front of everything as might have been expected of a more ego driven band.
Given that “Terrible Things That Could Happen” is the band’s debut EP, terrible things could have happened but they didn’t. I look forward to their next release.
Best song? The episodic title track.
The verdict? Guilty of all charges of being good.