State & Nature EP

The most welcome of bolts from the blue. Envelope’s debut is the most gloriously delightful opener to come from an Irish group this year. A feast of pleasures, State and Nature shifts from the seductively visceral to deep and responsive melancholia. At its best, specifically on staggering second track ‘Cost of Living’, the Dublin trio eloquently spit contempt from the speakers, whilst locking their rage behind Simon Rand’s warm vocals to make for an uncomfortable hybrid of sound. It’s like Coldplay’s ‘Politik’, as executed by a crossbreed of Whipping Boy and Radiohead. The epic and the extraordinary continue to dominate on ‘Politis’ and ‘Store In A Dark Place’, with the sounds of Elbow, Doves and their closest Irish contemporaries God Is An Astronaut resonating throughout. An absolute gem of a debut.