The Loft. Once Round the Fair: The Loft 1982-1985.

I remember a professor once saying that the worst thing you could write about something is that it was “nice”. The Loft are nice, and I am totally OK with that. It’s music for when you feel fine; when the weather’s good; when you’ve grabbed a book and decided to stay in bed. For the most part, they wrote mid-paced songs with mid-range vocals, but managed to give them just enough of an edge with well deployed spiky guitars lines and a little bit of grit and self-deprecation. The stand out is, of course, Up the Hill and Down the Slope, which I’ve rhapsodized about before. It’s an instant classic of the genre; all tangled guitars and crooked melodies that feels just like rolling and flailing your way down a grassy hill as a kid. To their credit, The Loft got in there early (only recording between 1982 and 1985 and putting out a handful of singles and a Peel session) and, along with bands like the June Brides and Biff Bang Pow, helped create the indie-pop template of perfecting your imperfections.

Once Round

The Loft info from Creation Records

The Loft on myspace