London-based quartet The New Nostalgia show melodic vigor and swagger on “Ibis Budget,” their first single of 2022. Suave vocals and a grooving bass line build a conversational intro, capturing the surreal day-to-day of “living out of a suitcase in a discount airport hotel.”
A hectic sense of anxiety — “it’s not going well, can’t you tell!?”– drives into an exciting chorus, led by pulsing guitars and stagnated vocals, stylistically reminiscent of Art Brut. A psych-friendly guitar follows thereafter, steadying the amped-up energy before another enjoyable escalation, exuding Brit-pop nostalgia in the wordlessly anthemic vocals. “Ibis Budget” is an excitable, hooky track with a series of gripping structural twists and turns.
The track found inspiration from lead singer Patrick McCallion’s experiences in a budget hotel on the outskirts of Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. He explains further:
“I moved to The Netherlands under very chaotic circumstances back in 2017 and spent around two weeks living in a budget hotel near the airport while I tried to find an apartment to rent. It was one of the most surreal, Alan Partridge style experiences of my life and I’ve basically been trying to find a way to get this into a song for the past five years! “Ibis Budget” is a chaotic farce of a track, which is basically the only way you can write about living out of a suitcase in a discount airport hotel!”
The band has upcoming tour dates around the UK and in Amsterdam. Check out their website for more.
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This track and others featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Best of May 2022’ Spotify playlist.
