Voxtrot - 'Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives' (Playlouder) Released 25/09/06

A record by a bunch of Texan Belle and Sebastian enthusiasts should be welcomed with open arms whatever the actual quality of the songs are – it shows a worldly consciousness that most politicians from the state dangerously lack (let's face it, does George Bush even know where Scotland is?).Austin's Voxtrot, therefore, should be doubly praised for producing a shimmering, infectious EP, nodding equally to the very best of 1980's British rock, and the recent crop of American new-wave enthusiasts like Interpol and The Strokes. Their second ep, 'Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives' is a fantastic companion piece to their first, last year's 'Raised by Wolves,' and, together could form the backbone of an excellent debut album.

Wildly inventive and unashamedly populist, singer Ramesh Srivastava and his troop have already been feted by the music press in their homeland, and look set to make a huge impression in the country that spawned many of their influences, from arch miserablists Joy Division and Morrissey to the more effervescent pop of the Stone Roses and the aforementioned Belle and Sebastian. Melodic, upbeat and with, like, proper choruses involving violins and everything, Voxtrot could be the real deal – not trying too hard to be Pavement, but with enough spikiness to please the angular fringe types alongside the pop pickers. Standout tracks here, the cracking piano-led romp 'Rise Up in the Dirt' and the quirky 'Four Long Days' could easily be cuts off 'If You're Feeling Sinister', such is the melancholic, but strangely uplifting tone in Srivastava's voice (close your eyes and tell me he's not channeling Stuart Murdoch). EP closer 'Soft and Warm' even has a horn section – however, their influences never overshadow a gem of a record , and Voxtrot – if their first longplayer is as good as this – could be very big indeed.