Back to NYC seems to lift it’s hooks directly from other songs, a bit of ‘Psycho Killer’, a little bit of ‘Paradise City’ – although maybe this is just a case of those ear worms burrowing unintentionally. There are only so many words that rhyme with ‘city’, including but not limited to ‘pretty’, but the bridge melody here lifts almost verbatim Talking Heads “Ay Ay Ay Ay!” melody. Homage mebbe? Hopefully!
Purple Threads are from glorious Leeds, but the vocal performance is hampered by a bit too much brattish faux-American attitude. The song half-times for a period, and at this pace it does exude a modicum of the attitude promised in their bio. It gives it space to breathe and swagger a little.
This is garage rock with a thread of pop, but it needs unpretentious DIY honesty or a few bob spending on it to really tick any of the intended boxes. Stylistically this feels like megaband Dead Weather but lacks the conviction. It’s a bit like an impression of cool – Primark Aviators. Purple Thread
I’m assured by a quick Google that Purple Threads have a chaotic live performance, and their previous releases have more flair, but this isn’t echoed here. It all feels a little