Coastal Horizon is a four-piece indie rock band from Pembroke Dock. The band has been performing since 2017 but this EP is their first major release, and it contains four self-penned tracks of melodic, upbeat and catchy pop rock, heavily influenced by the likes of The Beatles, Oasis, Stereophonics, and The Arctic Monkeys.

The band members are – Mathew George (lead vocals/rhythm guitar), Aidan George (bass guitar/backing vocals), Josh Cox (lead guitar/backing vocals) and Jared Howells (drums).

Musically the template seems to involve harnessing the member’s disparate influences which go beyond those mentioned (could it be any other way these days when the whole history of rock is readily available to any dedicated musician with an interest in what went before?) to create an instantly recognisable sound.

A rolling, dynamic rhythm section is locked in with the acoustic guitar, around and within which the lead guitar chimes and sparkles in a fashion that recalls the best of the Byrds and Orange Juice, above which lyricist Mathew’s distinctive vocals soar on traditional tales of loves lost and won.

'World is Changing' is my favourite track because even though the lyrics deal ostensibly with a blossoming love affair they also allude, with a Zen-like simplicity, to the spirit and beauty of the natural world, which of course is always changing, renewing itself, yet paradoxically staying the same.

Anyway, this record may not change your world but its effervescent good-time pop will bring you joy. There’s nowt wrong with that.

The EP can be found on all the usual cyber platforms and Coastal Horizon have a Facebook page.

Footnote: In the mid-90s, at the height of the BritPop boom, Mathew’s dad, Phil George, fronted Nemesis, a band that sounded remarkably similar to Coastal Horizon. The power of positive parenting? Or members of the same Teenage Fanclub?

BB Skone