Buffalo Sunn 'By The Ocean By The Sea' - Album Review

Buffalo Sunn – the band formerly known as Sweet Jane – have earned quite a reputation ahead of this first full-length effort. It opens with ‘I Wanna Be In Love’, followed by hit single ‘By Your Side’. Both tracks make the band’s appeal plain. They are adept at sun-kissed indie, featuring reverb splashed guitars and casually-delivered vocals – a Stone Roses vibe mingled with a surf-pop influence.
The Dublin six-piece can pick up the pace too, as they demonstrate on the driving ‘Witches’. Like a child on a bike, it’s when things slow down that this album begins to wobble.
‘Let It Go’ meanders through a leisurely five minutes, while ‘Gimme Truth’ is an unsuccessful stab at a dreamy ballad – something actually executed with style on ‘Drifting Away’.
The resumption of normal service, though, brings more joys: ‘Seven Seas’ is a gorgeous piece of pop, while forthcoming single ‘Ocean’ fizzes with post-punk energy. Though not without flaws, By The Ocean By The Sea justifies Buffalo Sunn’s significant momentum. The secret, it seems, may be not slowing down.

Out October 10.