California's Night School has a love for the 1960's pop, particularly for the girl groups of that era, which becomes more apparent with the band's each release. After their 2014 EP, Heart Beat and their split with Dott a year later, the dreampop three-piece have just released their debut full length, Blush, via Graveface Records.
Blush is a delightful record which extends its sunny vibes and hot summer excitement to the listener through the vocal harmonies, the mesmerizing guitar distortion and its overall mellowness. The 10-song album handles its influences with care, whether those come from the aforementioned sixties Phil Spector-esque pop, the Beach Boys-like euphony or the straight from the nineties fuzziness.
The playful and well made video for Last Disaster exquisitely portrays the album's sunlit mood.
Despite the heartbreak and the bitterness some of Alexandra Morte's lyrics suggest, Blush is for the most part a bright, optimistic record. With time and by earning a little more experience in their craft, it would be fair to expect bigger things from Night School in the future. Until then, if you hang on tightly to Blush, you won't be disappointed.
Vinyl, cassette and digital via Graveface's Bandcamp
ZR