ALFIE TEMPLEMAN
Mellow Moon (Chess Club/AWAL)
Mellow Moon is an effervescent, promising debut from Alfie Templeman. He cements his reputation for making breezy indie-pop songs, often drawing inspiration from (and collaborating with) his contemporaries. You’re A Liar features a falsetto vocal similar to Jungle and the sleek guitar hooks of Folding Mountains resemble those of Declan McKenna.
Templeman cites Steve Lacy and Rex Orange County as influences too, but Nile Rodgers is the likely ancestry of the album’s funky production style. Nonetheless, Templeman puts his stamp on Mellow Moon and even hints at a darker side in the final track, Just Below The Above, which is an uncharacteristically slow song which leans towards Pink Floyd or Radiohead. Templeman is currently touring the UK, with numerous festival appearances (including Cardiff’s Depot In The Castle on Sat 9 July) – a far cry from the confinement in which much of the album was written, whilst Templeman was shielding.
words ROSANNA LEWIS
