Headzinc

Ladies and gentlemen, Headzinc have arrived: long overdue but right on time. Armed with enough feelgood vibes for the longest hottest summer, Johnny Moy and Robbie Dunne’s boogie bus (open top, of course) has been on something of a virtual global tour, soaking up optimistic, sexually charged atmospheres from every kind of dancefloor.

Back at base, the engineering’s now complete, the engine’s tuned-up to the max, tank’s refueled, and driver and conductor are signaling the rest of us to hop on board. At the terminus, they’ll find an eager queue has formed in the twelve months since their journey began. Now it’s our turn. No smoking down the back.

The Headzinc bus takes the quickest route to destination happiness, no lengthy detours or painfully slow traffic jams permitted, and upon disembarking you’re itching to hop straight back on to enjoy it all over.

You’ll be punch drunk after the first 15 rounds, but Headzinc are driving and they haven’t clocked up any penalty points. Sleazy funked-up blues features in ‘Vice City’, on it’s on to Milan and Paris with ‘Statistically Joe’, before sex and soul combine on ‘All It Takes’: have these wide boys got an eye for the ladies, or what?

Shadowesque experimentation and rough and ready hip-hop soon come, and you’ll enjoy a smoky jazz club seduction and a chilled siesta on the terrace of Space in Ibiza.

Youth and experience have combined perfectly here, you’re thinking as you head for home, clutching tightly this rarity among clubby albums aimed at the ‘home listener’: it carries no excess baggage to weigh it down. ‘Gold For The Money’ is probably as close as an eclectic leftfield DJ like Johnny can get to an accurate portrayal of his club sets, while the sublime single ‘Own Thing’ is the coolest girly house record you’ll hear this summer.

Headzinc have arrived and they really come a long way, baby. This is a trip. Enjoy it.