The music of Bay Area band George Children recalls not only Teenage Fanclub, an avowed influence on the group, but early Felt without the guitar frills. Things are centered around Jordan Chipman, and sometimes George Children is a live four-piece and sometimes it's just Jordan. In either case, the tunes on their new EP, Kitchen Sink Drama, are lovely and affecting.
"Paranoid Sweetness" is the one that made me think of Felt, while "Beautiful Stranger" is clearly in thrall to the Fannies. Elsewhere, "Lucille" has a nice down-tempo rambling quality about it, while the Chris Bell-y "Today is Empty" is even better but a bit bleaker. Things reach a sort of quiet peak with a modest cover of "Key Losers" by Guided By Voices.
Kitchen Sink Drama is full of simple and quiet charm. George Children find hooks, and offer up melodies which are a bit bracing, but soothing too in an odd way. The tunes are just as long as they need to be, and nothing here is too jarring. That said, it's neatly composed and easy to like a whole lot.
Kitchen Sink Drama by George Children is out now via Dandy Boy Records.
[Photo: Dandy Boy Records]