Nai Harvest are one of those bands who give me hope, yet I can’t help, but follow them with a sense of trepidation. Over the course of their debut full-length Whatever released last year, the Hold Open Your Head EP from earlier this year, and their recent cover of Teenage Fanclub’s ‘’Ain’t That Enough,’’ the Sheffield noise-pop duo have yet to let me down. Alongside fellow two-piece contemporaries Playlounge, with whom they are releasing a split entitled Flower, as well as a series of tour dates, their induction of fuzzy aesthetics and emo sensibilities caught me off guard the first time I came across the fiddly beauty of ‘’Distance, Etc.’’ They became a band to cherish, and their subsequent releases only added to their appeal.
With new single ‘’Buttercups,’’ not only do Nai Harvest enhance that appeal, but they quash any fears of the duo underperforming. Lead singer/guitarist Ben Thompson’s writing on the track is more direct than the majority of Nai Harvest’s releases, but its charm lies in the strength of its chorus and hook. ‘I don’t wanna feel like a lowlife/stab me in the chest with you knife/fill me up again with buttercups’ cries Thompson over a mash of distortion and Lew Currie’s drums. The self-deprecating nature of the lyrics calls to the emotional wrench bands all the way from Sunny Day Real Estate to early Biffy Clyro were able to induce, and represents further the strength of Thompson’s writing. The ringing guitar refrain lifts the track to a whole new level, and ensures you won’t bet forgetting the song in a hurry.
The instrumentals on ‘’Buttercups’’ have certainly shifted into more fuzz than emo, but the duo make sure lines such as ‘why can’t you be all I want/I guess that isn’t all your fault’ retain the sense of dislocation they play so well. The result is more accessible, more engaging, and ultimately more enjoyable than anything Nai Harvest have produced thus far. There is definitely a shoegaze aesthetic prevalent on the song which does ring true with bands such as Playlounge, which isn’t surprising considering the fact the track was taken off of their recent split. Regardless, it represents a step forward for Nai Harvest and enhances the impressive profile they have been amassing over the last couple of years or so. The rise of Sheffield’s favourite duo continues in style.