I’ve written before how much I think York based Everything After Midnight have truly developed as a band over the past 18 months, as witnessed by the first two tracks already released from their debut EP Still Sleeping.

Previously released track On Beauty has a sweet sense of intrigue which lifts the track beyond the standard indie release, and it has something of the grand ambition of a band like Wolf Alice with a number of different layers behind those punching vocals.

Likewise Embark on the Wood is a fully developed tune with a main and strong vocal story, but with a heap of vital musical subplots standing proud just behind. This is a tune that swirls, and you can pick out different lines on each play.

So, I was particularly interested to discover how the new EP Still Sleeping as a whole hangs together. The band explain it was recorded at Crooked Room Studios on the edge of the city on two of the hottest days in summer. No doubt Everything After Midnight were powered on solar as the EP fair sizzles.

I did wonder whether the two tracks already out were the jewel in the crown of the EP, but actually I think the 3 other tracks are equal or even better; they perhaps show a more reflective EAM and feel even closer to what the band are about. Her is a nicely vulnerable sounding track, where even the lead line of the guitar feels fragile. It kind of has that rather delicate with an edge feeling of somebody like early Everything But The Girl and the quality bedroom vibe of the Cherry Red Records heyday of the early 80’s.

Light in the Afternoon is another deeply underground track of the same cloth; I can’t see across the room for the atmosphere within this one. There’s also a delicious build up to a soaring ridge. This song is one of those days on a hike when the sun suddenly cuts across the clouds just at the right view point.

That just leaves the title track Still Sleeping which is performed with purity. But it’s purity with a hint of naughty fuzz in the musical backdrop.

* images have been taken from EAM’s social media