SAN CISCO

Awkward
Island City Records/MGM

Call-and-response vocals, ecstatic, shiny dance-floor sensibilities and enough hooks to reel in an entire sea of hipster teenagers buoy the sophomore release from local indie pop four-piece San Cisco.
San Cisco offer their most immediate bid for pop dominance with the triple j endorsed single and title track from the EP, Awkward. Here, Josh Biondillo’s reverb-doused guitar and bright keyboards spar with Nick Gardner’s declarative bass, while lead vocalist Jordi Davieson’s sweet vocals bounce off drummer Scarlett Stevens’ deadpan delivery to great success.
There are moments when Davieson’s vocals become too affected for their own good, but his ear for a tight, catchy pop song and ascending chorus hardly ever lets him down.
From the pounding tribal rhythms of Rocket Ship of to the crazily catchy doo-doo-wah-doo vocals of Lover, all five tracks sound like hits waiting to happen, and more than prove that the talented local outfit have strong enough songwriting skills to be heard above the hype.
Bound to be one of 2012’s most popular local releases, the tunes on Awkward are memorable enough to make the idea that San Cisco will be forgotten by next summer seem a highly unlikely suggestion. San Cisco will have you humming their tunes under your breath. That is, if you’re not wailing them in your car, volume cranked, inhibition long gone.

_JENNIFER PETERSON-WARD