NOISEY 148: TOY

In a year when anyone in the UK with a musical opinion wants to sound the death knell on guitar music, London-based five piece Toy might be the ones to resurrect it. Their debut single ‘Left Myself Behind’ offers a fresh take on melodic psych-rock, drawn together by oscillating rhythms and motorik beats. It’s no accident too that they’re linked to the other big British psych-crossover success, The Horrors.

Surprisingly, the band rose from the ashes of 2007 nearly-rans Joe Lean & the Jing Jang Jong. Tom (vocals, guitar), Dominic (guitar) and Panda (bass) all met at school in Brighton and creative differences eventually saw them break away from their first band, who imploded even before a debut album dropped. “We were 18 years old back then and there were so many things we had no idea about,” explains Panda. “The favourite songs that we wrote, our singer didn’t like because we were on completely different wavelengths...and as time went on we started to realise we were really keen to form our own band.”

The trio hightailed it up to the UK capital, hooking up with keyboard player Alejandra and drummer Charlie. They holed up in a tiny North London room, experimenting with different sounds and styles to see what came out naturally and found shared reference points in both the harmonies of west coast rock n roll and the beats and propulsions of krautrock's big hitters: Can, Faust and Neu! “We try to recreate the effects and emotions that the music we love makes us feel...we like a good blend of raw energy, intricacy, beauty, heaviness and softness,” says Panda.

Although their live debut came a year back at underground psych/garage night Cave, it wasn’t until a supporting tour with The Horrors last October that the world began to notice their appeal. Almost every review name-checked Toy and raved about their frenzied and exhilarating sets (as well as their hirsuteness - these kids have a lot of hair between them!). Inevitable placings on ‘ones to watch’ lists have followed and they’ve kick-started 2012 with a four-date residency at one of East London’s coolest hangouts, The Shacklewell Arms. Their shows have had music fans clamouring for tickets and critics grasping for superlatives. They are, without a doubt, the hottest new band in Britain right now.