I discovered Don on his BandCamp page today and am very impressed with his synth-heavy first home recording, "February EP." "Green Winter," the opening track starts with a dreamy bang. It's an ambient piece with a bubbly keyboard melody, but the real fun hasn't even begun yet. The second cut is a cover of Wild Nothing's "Summer Holiday." It stays very true to the original song, yet the harsh vocals give me a Clap Your Hands Say Yeah vibe. "Grow up is a funky Cure sounding song, but when the chorus hits, it could be mistaken for 80s stadium rock. "Mistake" shows us the lighter side of Patch. The tune could have easily been a Cyndi Lauper #1 hit, yet still keeps its own sense of originality throughout. "Static" is a good enough closer, yet doesn't keep my interest until the synths work their magic. Overall, "February" is an album with plenty of nostalgia and shows heaps of promise. Don may well be the face of nu-gaze if he keeps putting out killer songs like these.
(Guess what else? It's free! Download it here!)
