EP: Teenage Dads release a magnificent dosage of 'Club Echo' and announce launch tour

Teenage Dads are a familiar indie quartet from the Morning Peninsula. Their glittery indie music has been winning over fans and listeners throughout the country, and rightfully so when every song they write radiates charisma and peculiarity. Their new eight-track EP ‘Club Echo’ is an idiosyncratic take on the concepts of transformation and perception; poignant sentiments buoyed by their iridescent and innovative music, brimming with a mixture of ingenuity and habituation. frontman Jordan says of the EP:

This EP looks at our lives from the last five years but from our current perspective. It looks at the concept of change and how life continues to move despite everything that may be going on in your life: the friendships, the obstacles you face and next chapters. What’s happened has happened, and whether it was how you intended or you’re stuck living with regret is not up to you. It’s bittersweet, a reminder of the good times but also a reminder that they’re gone, and you can’t go back. It’s like you’re looking at these moments “through a window”, like a party you weren’t invited to.

EP opener ‘Elevator’ begins with a gemstone guitar riff that offers rumination of both San Cisco and The Inbetweeners soundtrack. Lush drums and blithely reverberated vocals coagulate the mix and combine for an animated foundation to a promising body of work. This is followed by the focus track ‘Piano Girl’, with heavier guitars and a soaring chorus, meritoriously functioning as an ode to their live performances. High in vitality and spirit, and full of singalongs, it’s an impressive slice of indie-pop that will work its way into the memories of an audience.

‘I Believe It’ follows a similar pattern with bounding verses and effortless lyrical flow; Teenage Dads know when to let loose and when to hold back – this song finds a nice middle ground with enough dancing and head bopping incentive to soundtrack a morning routine or a party setting. Then comes the glorious single ‘Cheerleader’, a gorgeous culmination of indie expertise that made itself familiar with triple j listeners and fans alike, with its deftly complimented instrumentation and a fantastic hook – a track soon to be disseminated to multiple festival crowds.

‘Come On Cowboy, Fire Your Gun!’ heightens the vigour with a faster tempo and whimsical combinations of synths and elaborate guitar riffs, climaxing with rich polyphony. An acoustic version of ‘Cheerleader’ is a solemn compliment to its full band predecessor, as does an alternative mix of ‘Piano Girl’, with digitised drums and amped up overdrive throughout the mix, taking a leaf out of The Vanns’ booklet with the addition of supernumerary versions of songs. Closing the EP is ‘Thank You For The Honey, Honey’, reflecting on the elegant and distinct EP with elevated energy and dynamism that hurtles towards an emphatic finale.

Teenage Dads have been making vibrant noise for several years now and their latest offering shows their guileful maturation; you’d hope it’s not the peak of their influence when they’re hitting a stride like this. ‘Club Echo’ is a magnum opus of adroit indie music that is guaranteed to slide its way into your memory, guided by crisp production and ripened song writing and a magnificent dosage of intricacies, smooth enough to warm the soul and pump the heart.

You can listen to ‘Club Echo’ here.