single review ~ 'boyfriend' ~ halfmoon bay

New Ep "I'll meet you at the wall." is out now!

Name: Halfmoon Bay
Genre: Low-fi
For Fans Of: Aaron Shanley, Elliot Smith, Sparklehorse
Location: Coleraine

As the frontman, songwriter and face of Coleraine's premier emo-alternative rock band The Bayonettes, it's fair to say Danny McClelland is a man with very little spare time; with this in mind, it makes the creation of 'Halfmoon Bay', his solo project, even more remarkable.

An intimate affair in more ways than one, Halfmoon Bay marries McClelland's trademark emotional tones with a softer, gentler sound. Those familiar with the North Coast songwriter's work to date will no doubt see Halfmoon Bay as a natural progression, with songs like 'Two Miles For Me Is 1000 For You' starting life as a Halfmoon Bay style acoustic affair, before bringing in the electric guitars and thundering drums (well worth a quick Soundcloud search!). Here we see those electric guitars not quite erased completely, but instead molded into the Robert Smith, 'Disintegration' era blueprint.

Florescent, guitar work carries McClelland's vocals throughout this floating track. As low-fi fuzz goes, it's the type of touching realism that made Aaron Shanley such a cult hero in Belfast.

"I'm more of a slow dancer and a hopeless romancer"

Already sounding fully formed, no doubt Halfmoon Bay will continue to tug the heartstrings of it's creator for a long time. Whether or not that will ever see it take priority over The Bayonettes remains to be seen ~ for now, let's just enjoy them both, eh?

Taylor Johnson