Swimclub

Sugary pop has never ranked high up in our genre preferences, but some bands are indeed able to take it to a whole new level, mostly by using infallible weapons like songwriting talent and charming voices. The Housemartins and Belle and Sebastian were two of those bands, and Swimclub seems to have learned their indie pop lesson by heart. The NYC band's debut EP "Funhouse for Friends" showcases 5 cristalline pop gems, hummable but never banal melodies, and vocals that sound compassionate and sincere. This music has the potential to resonate with a lot of people. - Deli Magazine NYC

Sugary pop has never ranked high up in our genre preferences, but some bands are indeed able to take it to a whole new level, mostly by using infallible weapons like songwriting talent and charming voices. The Housemartins and Belle and Sebastian were two of those bands, and Swimclub seems to have learned their indie pop lesson by heart. The NYC band's debut EP "Funhouse for Friends" showcases 5 cristalline pop gems, hummable but never banal melodies, and vocals that sound compassionate and sincere. This music has the potential to resonate with a lot of people. - Deli Magazine NYC

According to their website, Brooklyn's Swimclub have "re-dedicated themselves to the art of selling out" on their debut release. What exactly does that sound like?

For starters, a whole lot of fun. The album is filled with all manner of catchy surf-rock riffs and melodies that would be right at home in an old Annette Funicello beach romp. It's an upbeat affair with backing vocals aplenty, including lots of "oh oh ohs," and "da da da-duhs." There's even room for tambourine, hand-claps and drums whose beat at one point resembles a '60s take on "My Sharona."

Best of all, it doesn't overstay its welcome. The longest song of the bunch comes in at a mere three minutes and 41 seconds, and the whole record is only a shade over half an hour. It goes by quickly, too. If this is the sound of selling out, bring on the corporate ogres. —Michael Cimaomo - The Valley Advocate

I hightailed out of SoundFix to see Swimclub at The Rose. The band, comprised of Greg Adams, Kevin Bryant and brothers Gene and Jim Davenport, has sunny pop sensibilities similar to Teenage Fanclub and Julie Ocean with a coat of ‘60s pop rock. Crammed on a small stage, Jim Davenport said he “couldn’t rock hard enough” due to the restricted space, but they did manage to shatter a glass in time with one of their songs. The sweet vocal harmonies and the melodies of Swimclub’s songs stayed with me as I ran out to catch the JMZ to the Lower East Side. - Deli Magazine NYC

The four well-scrubbed gents of Brooklyn's Swimclub have taken great pains to craft a debut worthy of the effervescent, matching outfits' 60's pop they clearly adore, and they largely succeed in crafting a set as pretty as it is perishable. Keeping things tethered to terra firma is a sonorous Stephen Merritt/Jonathan Richman vibe that steeps tracks such as "Souvenir" and "Everything Is Coming Around" in a tenor of toothsome melancholy.

Charles Devilbliss - AM New York

Toe tapping along to a song is a great way to start a Friday. Swimclub's song is popilicious with a little bit of a Chromeo/70s kickback sound. "She's a Teaser" gets a little repetitive but it has that something that will grab your attention. "What You Want" is one you'll be singing along to and is wonderfully catchy. I seriously hope some radio station (or many of them) are playing their songs because they have the whole mass appeal thing going for them. These songs are teasers for their new EP, Funhouse For Fiends, out April 26th. - New Music Collaborative

Toe tapping along to a song is a great way to start a Friday. Swimclub's song is popilicious with a little bit of a Chromeo/70s kickback sound. "She's a Teaser" gets a little repetitive but it has that something that will grab your attention. "What You Want" is one you'll be singing along to and is wonderfully catchy. I seriously hope some radio station (or many of them) are playing their songs because they have the whole mass appeal thing going for them. These songs are teasers for their new EP, Funhouse For Fiends, out April 26th. - New Music Collaborative

Swimclub’s Gene Davenport sensed he had a ghostly visitor in his NYC apartment, but rather than pack his bags he used his nightly hauntings as a source of inspiration capturing the gradual transformation of these encounters from the unsettling to the mundane. The result: a shimmering new pop tune, She’s A Teaser, with a driving beat, jangly guitars and hooks aplenty.

There are more jangly guitars and some reverb drenched backup vocals on the cracking track, What You Want, which explores the themes of unrequited love and wistful memories.

Both are from Swimclub’s forthcoming EP, Funhouse For Fiends, out on 26th April. Both bode very well indeed for the full release! In the meantime you can visit their blog here. - Mad Mackerel

Swimclub’s Gene Davenport sensed he had a ghostly visitor in his NYC apartment, but rather than pack his bags he used his nightly hauntings as a source of inspiration capturing the gradual transformation of these encounters from the unsettling to the mundane. The result: a shimmering new pop tune, She’s A Teaser, with a driving beat, jangly guitars and hooks aplenty.

There are more jangly guitars and some reverb drenched backup vocals on the cracking track, What You Want, which explores the themes of unrequited love and wistful memories.

Both are from Swimclub’s forthcoming EP, Funhouse For Fiends, out on 26th April. Both bode very well indeed for the full release! In the meantime you can visit their blog here. - Mad Mackerel

A perfect, perfect medium between lo-fi and hi-fi, it has SUCH a good Indie-pop sound, original, the perfect length, the lead singer’s voice is just pleasant–I already want to see them live and they don’t even have any Youtube videos up. This is literally DA SHIT I LIEK. It’s summer, the world is green and white and blue and this is perfect for me and you. - TastyJams

Brooklyn act Swimclub’s Funhouse for Friends is a pretty great crash course in pop history. Singer Gene Davenport, Morrissey perched on his shoulder, intones his way through a few generations of rock ‘n’ roll music — highlight “What You Want” offers handclaps, romantic befuddlement and ’50s guitars; “El Lamento!” brings in the ’80s synths; “Never Tried” dips into post-punk. But the band’s textbook dives never go deep enough to distract from tunes catchy enough to win a Gold Glove and moving enough to wallow away your workweek woes. The self-released EP is out now. - David Greenwald

Brooklyn act Swimclub’s Funhouse for Friends is a pretty great crash course in pop history. Singer Gene Davenport, Morrissey perched on his shoulder, intones his way through a few generations of rock ‘n’ roll music — highlight “What You Want” offers handclaps, romantic befuddlement and ’50s guitars; “El Lamento!” brings in the ’80s synths; “Never Tried” dips into post-punk. But the band’s textbook dives never go deep enough to distract from tunes catchy enough to win a Gold Glove and moving enough to wallow away your workweek woes. The self-released EP is out now. - David Greenwald