The Winter Passing are a bit special; their blend of punk rocking indie with the interwoven vocals of Rob and Kate Flynn has a confident swagger and individuality that delivers on each and every tune. The six tracks on offer on the Irish quartet’s latest EP, ‘Double Exposure’, cement their reputation even further, delivering hook-filled, quirky indie rock at its best.

The swirling riff and pop punk bassline of opener ‘Paper Rabbit’ make for a likeable start, the chorus immediately catching the ear. The single, ‘Significance’, follows in superb style – they have that gift of being able to kick in an almost imperceptible shift to provide an uplifting melody that makes it soar in the chorus. Even so, they avoid the predictable, giving the rhythms plenty of space to power things along, gradually stripping the song down before rebuilding to a rousing finale; great stuff.

‘She Was a Rose’ follows with more intensity and some seriously punky bass, before the bright riffing and swirling beats of ‘Like Flowers Ache for Spring’ strikes a conversely positive note compared to the underlying anxiety of the lyrics. ‘Es-cap-ism’ is then poignantly atmospheric, with a pensive vocal from Kate, while closer ‘So Said Virginia’ bounces the EP to a hope filled conclusion.

All in all this is another strong record from The Winter Passing, as they blend together a number of familiar elements into a sound that is very much their own. They know how to arrange a song and succeed in nailing quality tunes with some serious hooks and a touch of barbed wire running through the veins. An excellent record.

4.5/5

Double Exposure by The Winter Passing is released 21st April on Big Scary Monsters (UK) / 6131 Records (US).

The Winter Passing links: Facebook|Twitter|Bandcamp

Words by Edward Layland (@EdwardLayland)