Racing Glaciers - Racing Glaciers EP

What did you do with your summer? Did you spend it in the sun (what there was of it, at least...), with an ice-cold cider in a beer garden? Or trapped indoors, watching the flood waters rise?

Given the weather, it's no surprise that Macclesfield four-piece Racing Glaciers spent their time working on this six-track EP that draws plenty of inspiration from rivers and the darker hours of the day.

Named after the group, Racing Glaciers was recorded in the summer of 2012, not in a recording studio, but in a living room - but there's plenty of quality underpinning this release, and it would be harsh to call it an amateur effort.

From the haunting opening of the EP's Intro, which leads directly into the anthemic South, to the energetic closing track Little River, there are more than a few goosebump moments if this is your kind of music (and enough to keep you listening, even if it's not).

Songs with a strong sense of progression and storyline to them are somehow still unafraid to return to their chorus to provide some continuity, while the musical motifs introduced along the way mix things up to prevent anything from getting stale - as if it even could.

High Points

It's usually hard to pick out a high point on an EP, as there's not so much to choose from, but Racing Glaciers' Intro and South combine to create a four-minute anthem that could easily appear on a movie soundtrack.

The transition between the two is seamless, yet South could equally well stand alone on, say, an iPod playlist - and its lyrics, while speedy, are easily learned and form a kind of musical mantra that you'll find yourself singing along with even without meaning to.

The Verdict

We're always pleased to feature new music on Popsiculture, but Racing Glaciers deserve their place more than most, with the kind of music that's really pushing the charts to new highs at the moment.

Think of the anthemic sounds of Elbow, the experimental approach of Tired Pony (still getting played regularly here) and the instrumental aptitude of Mumford & Sons, and you're close to what you can expect from this EP.

Best of all, it's been released on a 'name your price' basis via Bandcamp, meaning you can grab it for whatever you think it's worth, as well as previewing the tracks on the Racing Glaciers Bandcamp page.

Is this approach the future of music? We'd like to think so - Racing Glaciers are clearly passionate enough about their music that they care more about getting it heard than about making the big bucks. If this first effort is anything to go by though, the money's on the horizon for the Macclesfield lads.

Final Score: 89%

Racing Glaciers are:

Tim Monaghan - vocals, drums, guitar, keyboards
Danny Thorpe - guitar, bass, percussion, backing vocals
Matt Scheepers - trumpet, bass, guitar, microkorg, backing vocals
Simon Millest - guitar

All songs written, recorded and performed by Danny Thorpe, Tim Monaghan, Simon Millest and Matt Scheepers.

Mixed by Tim Monaghan
Mastered by Ryan Penny at RCP Sound
Artwork by Danny Thorpe and Joe Cheetham