Thyla are lush and lucid on debut EP

“All of the songs on our debut, in some way, talk about the ills of today’s ‘social network’” shared vocalist and guitarist Millie Duthie of the inspiration behind their latest work. “The lyrics are based on negative personal experiences and a subsequent thirst to understand what it is that has made us so miserable.”

This self-aware introspection is prevalent throughout, the angst, frustration and supposed under-appreciation of our cyber second life efficiently surmised in a brew of droning fuzz, laser-cut riffs and the personable wails of Duthie’s diary extracts. The recently released “Blame” and “I Was Biting” are left by the wayside for the soaring guitar lines of opening track “Only Ever”, its euphoric bombast encapsulating the band’s seamless transition from the lush and lucid dream-pop of early singles “Ferris Wheels” and “Pristine Dream” to the guttural punch and rattle-stop percussion of “Blue”.

“Have you ever been a victim of your own mind?” asks Duthie in the aforementioned track, the fist-pumping rhythm and jaunty, hip-twitching melody reclaiming the song’s restless anxiety and twisting it into an anthemic crowd-pleaser. Similarly so “Bitter”, with its stomping beat, frenetic riffing and droning verse, the band clearly revelling in its dirgey undertones. Between the former and the oxymoronic coupling with “Candy”, Thyla have found the pivotal sweet spot in their sound that will no doubt infuse the core of any longer release. With their ever-increasing confidence both recorded - especially with Duthie’s increasingly commanding vocal and lyrical presence - and live (they’re off to SXSW this March) the band are presenting themselves as a viable threat to inherit the UK’s indie crown.