The Pastels: Slow Summits

Weathermen rarely get things right but if predictions are accurate, this summer is set to be the finest since that fabled one of 1995.
The Pastels have conjured up a soundtrack to go with the warm weather. Slow Summits’ sunny disposition is apparent from the off, with the bright and breezy acoustic opener ‘Secret Music’ drawing back the curtains and letting in the rays. They keep things simple, interspersing sweet acoustic melodies with occasional sprinkles of piano and string sections. The template of light-hearted and wistful indie pop remains mostly the same throughout. And when they’re penning numbers like the glorious ‘Check My Heart’, there really is no reason to deviate from the plan.
But the real highlight is the intimacy that Katrina Mitchell’s sultry voice brings to the tracks, whether taking the lead on ‘Summer Rain’ and ‘Kicking Leaves’, or floating in the background behind Stephen McRobbie’s deeper tones on ‘Wrong Light’.

Key Track: 'Check My Heart'