(Indie Rock / Garage) Best Friends - Hot. Reckless. Totally Insane. - 2015, MP3, 320 kbps

Pulp, Arctic Monkeys, Richard Hawley: the hulking shadow cast by the greats of Sheffield is long. But if the debut album from local garage-punk rockers Best Friends is anything to go by, then the city remains a source of promise and talent.
'Hot. Reckless. Totally Insane.' is characterized by filthy guitar riffs , apocalyptic levels of bass, and the raw, sweat 'n' spittle vocals of lead singer Lewis Sharman. It's a ramshackle, scuzzy and endearingly shambolic affair, evoking at times comparisons with Palma Violets, Howler and The Cribs.
The lean ten-track album is bookended by absolute stormers: "Fake Spit" is an upbeat fusion of fun and fury, while 'Orange Juice' is a gradually escalating call-to-arms anthem ("there's more of us than there is of them!"), destined to become the kind of live favourite you don't mind getting battered and bruised to.
It might be short, with a runtime of less then 35 minutes, but the LP is consistently engaging: a solid rock 'n' roll album crafted by a bunch of talented musicians finding their feet - and sounding like they're having a damn good time in the process.
Best of all, it radiates the type of authentic rock 'n' roll spirit that simply can't be manufactured in the studio. And that is never a bad thing.

01. Mumford & Sons - Wilder Mind (Folk-Rock, Bluegrass, Indie-Folk)
02. Longfellow - Prelude (Indie Rock)
03. Twinsmith - Alligator Years (Indie Pop / Electronic)04. Ivan & Alyosha - It’s All Just Pretend [Indie Pop/ Rock]
05. Young Kato - Don’t Wait 'Til Tomorrow (Indie Pop/Electropop)06. Hot Chip - Why Make Sense [Synth-Pop/Indie Pop/Electro]
07. Brandon Flowers - The Desired Effect [Pop Rock]
08. Will Young - 85% Proof (Pop / Soul / Disco)
09. The Coronas - The Long Way (Indie-Pop/Rock)
10. Urban Cone - Polaroid Memories (Indie-Pop/Rock/Electronic)
11. Canvas - sticktoitiveness (Indie Rock)
12. nav/attack – nav/attack (Electronic / Synth Pop)
13. Decades-Failures - 002 ( Post Punk / Indie Rock)14. Django Django - Born Under Saturn (Indie Rock / Psychedelic / Experimental / Electronic)
15. The Vaccines - English Graffiti [Indie Rock]
16. Turnover - Peripheral Vision ( Emo / Indie Rock / Shoegaze)
17. Children 18:3 – Come In (Pop-Punk /Rock)
18. Mackintosh Braun - Arcadia (Synthpop, Electropop, Dreampop)
19. Les Jupes - Some Kind Of Family (Indie Rock)
20. Stellar Revival - Love Lust & Bad Company (Alternative Rock / Modern Rock / Post-Grunge)
21. Soviet - Ghosts (Synthpop / New Wave)
22. Surfer Blood - 1000 Palms (Indie Pop)
23. Fireflight - Innova (Alternative / Christian / Electronic / Female Vocal)
24. Twenty One Pilots - Blurryface (Indie Pop/ Hip Hop)
25. Pree - Rima (Indie Pop/ Folk / Female Vocal)
26. Duke Special - Look Out Machines! (Indie Pop)
27. Paul Weller - Saturns Pattern (Pop-Rock)
28. The Story So Far - The Story So Far (Pop-Punk / Punk Rock)
29. Hospital - Uncommon Sense (Indie Rock)
30. Chappo - Future Former Self (Indie Rock)
31. Folly & The Hunter - Awake (Indie Pop / Folk)
32. Bleib Modern - All Is Fair In Love And War (post-punk/shoegaze)
33. Zedd - True Colors (Electro House)
34. Cheerleader - The Sunshine of Your Youth (Indie Rock)
35. Strange Names - Use Your Time Wisely (Synth Pop / Rock)