The Magic Gang, an indie band from Britain released its debut self-titled album on Friday March 16. Though it is the band’s first album together, band members Jack Kaye, Paeris Giles, Kristian Smith and Angus Taylor have been making music for a long time. Some of their other musical endeavors include Home School, Yrrs, and Echochamp and other solo material that can be found on Soundcloud.

The new LP is composed of all of the EP’s the band has released since 2015. Since The Magic Gang has been generating buzz, without releasing a full length album until now. It is already nominated for the NME Award for Best New Artist.

The Magic Gang said they are heavily influenced by the fuzzy sound of popular “geek rock” band, Weezer. The song “Alright,” is one in particular that has the same angst as a garage band in the 1990s— Especially the opening lyric, “Take one step, see how it goes/Nobody wants to listen/ They said in time to get what I’m owed/ Nobody thinks it’s worth it.” It’s a good one to listen to when you just want to shut the world out for a little while.

The song, “Your Love” could be interpreted to depict a lot of things, but what I think the overall theme of it is that crushing on someone,  for lack of a better word— sucks. The lyrics describe how the person fogs up your mind, limiting your ability to think clearly, “I feel the separation fall away/ If I can make it through the day/ When I hear them talkin’ on the telephone/ Can barely make out what they say.” I like this song because it’s honest, and the melody is very light and memorable.

“How Can I Compete” is a song about the heartache of loving someone who wants to move away. The chorus goes, “How can I compete, I don’t want a contest/ I just wanna’ know that you will be in my arms/ And eventually, it’s coming to a point/ And I just wanna’ know that you will be.”

It’s a very spirited and youthful portrayal of dealing with a situation like this and I think that is admirable. It kind of forces you to tell yourself that there are some things you can’t control, and it’s OK.

Overall the album is very balanced. It offers a generous amount of edgy guitar solos, while still reeling you in with catchy choruses and sunny love songs devoted to girls named either “Jasmine” or “Caroline.” The timing of the release is perfect for curing your winter blues because this album would make the perfect soundtrack for the warm summer nights that, as The Magic Gang convinces you, aren’t so far away.

Rating: 5/5 stars