HEY, SLEEPER - EP REVIEW

Hey, Sleeper - Gone For Ten Fingers EP 
Hey, Sleeper - Gone For Ten Fingers EP

Berkshire. Home of...Berks. And Luke Roberts. Luke is the man behind the mellow loveliness that is Hey, Sleeper with a voice like Chris Martin before he went all Bono and a sparse approach to recording. This five track EP is a thing of simple beauty that shouldn't be overlooked just because it is standing in the corner at a party nervously fingering a bottle of Becks. 'Playing Cards' is your entree and it reminds me of the tender, more bleary eyed moments of Frank Turner which is a delightful thing in my book. 'Done Deal' on the other hand reminds me of little known but much loved troubadour Avert Francis with the gentle finger picking mixed beautifully with Roberts' intimate, heart rending vocal style.

Things a turn for the slightly jauntier on 'Home #2' but this is still undeniably reflective, introspective stuff of such delicate beauty that you fear each song might just blow away on a breeze before you've finished listening to it no matter how many times you've listened to it already. One lovely fact about this EP is that it was recorded on a Tascam 8 track which means you get every lip smack, voice crackle and reverberating guitar string as fresh and honest as it was performed. 'Could You Just' is the kind of song that you hear overdubbed as a depressed bar maid clears up on Christmas Eve knowing all she has to go home to is a cold flat and a drunk boyfriend. But, as said bar maid leaves the bar it starts to snow, 'Thomas & The Good Book' begins and everything is magical for the briefest of periods. Just magical enough to make her happy for a moment and surely that's all we ever need in life. Hey, Sleeper is an awful nom de plume but who cares when the music is this good? Not I, sir, not I.


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