Loch Lomond - Night Bats EP

 

Portland has roughly half a million inhabitants, and surveys reveal that approximately four-hundred thousand of them are in dead good bands (citation needed). Should Loch Lomond tire of Stumptown’s crowded music scene, they’d fit in nicely on this side of the Atlantic – and not just because of the Scotphilia hinted at in their name. Their chosen aesthetic is rife these days: taking cues from Loch Lomond’s fellow countrymen (and touring partners) The Decemberists, pocket-orchestra dramatists line the cobbles of Edinburgh, and Night Bats would establish an expatriate Loch Lomond’s credentials perfectly. The opening Ghost of an Earthworm (incidentally, Best Enigmatic Metaphor of 2010 thus far) stomps in tenderly, while Wax and Wire wanes out splendidly – taking our affections with it. [Chris Buckle]