Little Kicks - Shake Off Your Troubles

  by Dave Goodwin

published: 3 / 4 / 2017

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Review

Brace yourselves! Scottish four-piece the Little Kicks, purveyors of a rather distinctive brand of electronic indie rock music, have just unleashed their new album, 'Shake Off Your Troubles'. 'Put Your Love in Front of Me', their last album, was part funded by Creative Scotland and met with critical acclaim both in the UK and further afield in Europe during 2013. Several album tracks including the lead single 'Girl' and it’s B-side (“a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s 'Dreams') have enjoyed national radio airplay on BBC 6 Music, BBC Radio 1, Radio Scotland and XFM. Following the album’s release the band completed three successful headline tours of the UK and Europe to a great response and also toured as main support for Public Service Broadcasting and We Were Promised Jetpacks. They have also shared stages with the likes of Foals, the Vaccines, Frightened Rabbit, the Twilight Sad, Twin Atlantic, Maximo Park, Mystery Jets, Errors, Kooks, Editors, Wild Nothing and Maccabees, performing in the process at many of Britain’s major music festivals including T in the Park, Belladrum, Insider, Brew at the Bog, Electric Fields, Solus, Kelburn Garden Party and Insider. This is the Kicks' fourth album following their debut album 'Boxing Clever', which was released in June 2009, and their second 'The Little Kicks' in 2011 which also both received great critical acclaim in the UK music press. The basic theme for this outing is happiness and a gratitude for what you have and not taking things for granted, which in today's climate is a philosophy to make ample note of. They have been likened to Franz Ferdinand and even Sparks which is a huge mantra to live up to. The good thing is that these comparisons that they aren't that far off really. This is bright and brash full-on melodic indie-pop songs to make your feet and fingers tap in time to. The band themselves, Steven Milne, Andrew Corse, Adam Morrise and Scott Kelman, hail from Aberdeen but they spent their time writing the tracks for this set in a lodge on the shores of Loch Ness, finished it all in Edinburgh and mastered it further south at Abbey Road with a little help on most of the tracks by The Cairn String Quartet. The CD comes in a colourful card sleeved case with photos by Nick Mailer and has been released on Loosen Up Records.

Track Listing:-

1 Theme
2 Sing About Something Real
3 Don't Get Mad Get Even
4 Often
5 Let's Get Lost Together
6 Goodbye Enemies, Hello Friends
7 Bang the Drum Slowly
8 You and Someone Like Me
9 Gone but Not Forgotten
10 Before We Were Friends

Band Links:-

http://www.thelittlekicks.co.uk/
https://twitter.com/thelittlekicks
https://www.facebook.com/thelittlekick
https://www.youtube.com/user/stevenlit
https://plus.google.com/10046410459284