English Teacher
This Could be Texas

The title of best alternative album of this first part of the year, as far as I'm concerned, definitely goes to This Could be Texas by English Teacher.

English Teacher, led by the charismatic leader Lily Fontaine (vocals, guitar, and synth), met during their studies at the Leeds Conservatory and formed the band we know in 2020.

The band can comfortably be classified as part of the latest British post-punk revival wave and, like the bumblebee that, according to the laws of physics, shouldn’t be able to fly but doesn't know it and flies anyway, English Teacher are indeed derivative but not inhibited or less credible because of it.

Easy labels aside, the group's sound is anything but simple to describe. On one hand, the edgy pop frenzy built on piano (Broken Biscuits) reminds me of Eleanor Friedberger's Fiery Furnaces or Dresden Dolls, while on the other hand, Lily's intense and vibrant vocals over guitar feedback make me think of Alvvays. Blindfolded, I'd bet this is a band from the Rough Trade stable, but the truth is that these guys orbit around Island Records.

English Teacher evidently have a passion for coup de théâtre and there's not a track that plays without a change of pace, an instrumental eruption - whether it's brass or strings (Masterminf Specialism), it doesn't matter - sudden wall of sound, catchy bass riffs, loops... and they manage to do this without seeming gratuitous or pompous.

With English Teacher, there's not much to understand, you "just" need to trust them.