One to watch: Lifeguard

Last year, influential US indie label Matador brought thrilling teenage three-piece Horsegirl to a wider audience. Their latest signing, Lifeguard, have much in common: another precocious three-piece from the same thriving Chicago scene, they also feature Horsegirl guitarist-singer Penelope Lowenstein’s brother Isaac on drums. Drawing on alt-rock touchstones such as Mission of Burma and Les Savy Fav, Lifeguard’s sound owes much to the blend of melody and dissonance that characterised Sonic Youth circa Goo, all performed with a youthful brio.

However, as guitarist-vocalist Kai Slater told So Young magazine: “I believe we’re finding our own path – we do like these old bands, but it’s not about nailing this sound from a different time.” Bassist and vocalist Asher Case, meanwhile, feels that their home city is just as big an influence: “Chicago’s a big part of all of us. There definitely was a historic Chicago scene… but that scene has evolved into this one. It never stopped.”

The band’s first UK release appends five tracks recorded this year to 2022’s Crowd Can Talk EP, and the more considered new material, such as 17-18 Lovesong and Ten Canisters (OFB), shows how quickly their songwriting is progressing. A debut album proper is likely to follow next year, along with UK dates. They’ve threatened to get into “yacht fusion” when they turn 25, so there’s a further incentive to catch them as soon as possible.