Keyside - “Lights Out”
Keyside are at the forefront of the emerging Liverpool scene and have just delivered an instant classic with “Lights Out.”
The song's mellow mood is fuelled by a cleanly reverberated guitar sound that beautifully swells and soars on the odd notes. The band has chosen an indie tone that isn’t the typical Les Paul grunts which characterised the 1990s. With its inspirations, this song seems to be referencing a time earlier than that and I do believe that there are some nods to The La’s.
Filling in the gaps with nice guitar licks gives the song a very excellent atmosphere. “Lights Out” has a really good beat, thanks to the drums' happy swagger throughout. The vocal performance is highly distinctive and sounds more like a musical instrument than a singer. I did find some of the aspects of the lyrics hard to follow due to this, but I honestly don’t think that matters.
When you hear the song (looking beyond the primary instruments in the chorus) Kasabian comes to mind. There is a Kasabian-like swelling sensation, which I believe could be backing vocals buried in the mix, but it could also be more of that reverberated guitar.
This is the first that the world is hearing from Keyside, so here is to many more!