Shy Child

Like The White Stripes of new rave, Shy Child are a lean, mean duo who display a love of outdated kit. Vocalist Pete Cafarella is the only man in pop still playing the guitar-shaped-keyboard, or ‘keytar’ – an instrument last seen on Top Of The Pops, circa 1985, in the hands of best-forgotten numbnuts like Howard Jones. Still, aesthetics and pop history apart, the New Yorkers – who
make a shrill fluorescent noise with a seriously hard R&B bounce to it – do bring a breath of fresh air to the indie-electro
party. Granted, there’s more variety in a packet of Maltesers and the token slowie, ‘What’s It Feel Like?’, is cosmic tosh, however, at 2am on a Friday night, ‘Kick Drum’ and glam stomp ‘Astronaut’ sound like deliriously stupid anthems. Bring the noise!

Tony Naylor