Tally Spear – Tally 
Release Date: Out Now
Tally Spear is one of my
favourite discoveries of 2020 and this six track EP pulls together a flurry of
singles into a superbly concise and effective collection for your delectation.
The EP opens with ‘What Do I Want’, a sassy and angular piece that would be
watered down and rounded off in the hands of mainstream pop artists, but Spear
is all about the edges. ‘Can’t Find What I’m Looking For’ maintains that edge
with an ice cool and sparse arrangement that takes it’s beat from finger clicks
and it’s melody from a distant vocal before the chorus explodes with confidence
and desperation in equal measure. It’s one hell of a start.
On ‘Oddball’ we are treated to
suitably kooky melodies blended with Spear’s assured vocal but again those
angles and edges are there for all to see which adds a distinct amount of
substance to the abundance of style. ‘Already Gone’ has a dark side that takes
the sinister guitar notes and mixes in a few atmospherics to create a tune that
you wouldn’t be surprised to see paired with a video featuring scantily clad
woman writhing around in a dark room but thankfully Spear doesn’t need to
resort to such frivolity. Indeed, ‘City Girl’ has the pop chops but they’re
paired with some serious rock riffage which wouldn’t be out of place on a Pink
album or at Reading Festival (if they bother to book female artists). The EP
closes on ‘I Fee Free’, a delicious cover of the Cream classic that takes the
60s energy and matches it with some sparse 21st century arrangements
to make a song that breathes new life in to its own old bones. I declare 2020
to have been a good year for Tally Spear and there won’t be many you can say
that about come December.