Yumi Zouma
Keep It Close To Me
Arch Hill (NZ/AU) / Cascine (US) / Rallye (JP)

Yumi Zouma's debut album Yoncalla is just around the corner (May 27th). First single off the album was "Keep It Close To Me", while "Short Truth" folloed shortly after. To quote Turntable Kitchen: 'Yes, they may only have a pair of EPs to their name, but that doesn't change the fact that Yumi Zouma might just be one of our favorite bands in the world. That'll happen when those EPs are simply sublime.'

Synthpop. Yes, Yumi Zouma play synthpop. The Kiwi quartet are Christie Simpson (on vocals), Sam Perry (on bass, guitar, and synthesizer), Charlie Ryder (on guitar), and Josh Burgess (on bass, synth, and guitar). "Keep It Close To Me" is called 'this airy, sunny little ray of light'. It's a sunny, catcy and indeed a poppy tune. The band founded just some 3 years ago (on 18 April 2013); they launched EP in 2014 and EP II last year and now their first album proper is here. Quite an efficient gang, right. Openening for Lorde also helps boosting your career. "Keep It Close To Me" is a driving and fresh (synth) pop song, and if the rest of the album holds this quality it might be a good one. Not that I'll be their biggest fan, but the snappy, sugar-coated soft-pop of "Keep It..." is quite charming with its smooth edges. Fun and fresh stuff, as well as neatly catchy.

Copyright © 2016 Howard Popeye