Exciting! A new act for me to review! Papercity are originally from Nelson, although they hang out in the big smoke Tāmaki Makaurau these days. A self-described alt-pop band, they consist of vocalist/guitarist Alex Hargreaves, drummer Sam Edmonds, and bass player (I assume) Jack (great name there!) Rollinson.

New single Bored is great. It’s an absolute indie classic, with synths as an underbelly to some semi-mean guitars, a playful yet astute drum performance, and a steady, velvety bass holding the groove. It’s got strains of The Primitives, early Cranberries, and a raft of other late 80s, early 90s indie bands led vocally by a female performer. Even a tad of Elastica. None of which is intended to suggest copycats or anything, just something for term of reference for what I’m hearing and sending to you as a message of what to expect.

The video is on YouTube, and was directed by vocalist Alex. It’s a really great affair too: we have performance with some excellent, Gary Numan meets 1980-era Human League clothing and make-up. The scenery is imaginative and well utilised too, with the shipping container especially effective. Good thinking, and great cinematography.

The melody is subtle but clearly commercially viable. Alex has a great timbre, delivering menace with the hint of a glint in the eye. Lyrically that suits the message, I feel. From the EPK, Alex‘s words: “Bored is about shutting yourself off to the world and feeling bored of it at the same time. I hope it’s the kind of song that people blast when they’re sitting alone in their bedroom.”

The band recorded it in Nelson between drummer Sam‘s bedroom and Minuit studios, before taking off to studio titan Clint Murphy for a mix in Blighty. Finally across to Ryan Smith over in Nashville for the mastering. That veritable name-drop alone should tell you how serious Papercity is about making their music count. The desk mages have not let them down.

This is a dead cert for the charts, and it should be too. Great indie song, great musicianship, well written, arranged, instrumentation, and a belter of a vid to boot. Look out for it around the radio and the telly, and not just in Aotearoa. The BEEB in the UK likes this band, so keep an eye out all UK readers.

(BEEB? That’s the BBC to everyone outside the UK. It in no way means Bieber.)

I love to see bands coming along and really making a go of things globally. Kia Kaha to you Papercity, go take the world! I think you’re awesome.