Has London finally found a good answer to Keane? Well, possibly, as this new combo really has the big choruses and the catchy sing-alongs to rival their fellow countrymen, with whom they have shared the stage, albeit in different times. Only, they have guitars, and they sound more like, say, Duncan Sheik or light-hearted Crowded House than, say, A-ha. Just two years of age as a band, Lopez have succeeded in combining breezing, garage, surf and what-have-you rockpop with all round harmonies and radio-friendly lyrics. Sometimes they’re perhaps just too radio-friendly as they deviate towards that sort of Californian young-AOR that makes you suspect they might like Hoobastank. Luckily, it’s just a light aftertaste which goes away as you give the five-track e.p. repeated listens.

Two goods thing about Lopez: the tunes, surprisingly pleasant and somehow reassuring; the singing, self-confident and well-balanced in its four-part harmonies. Two not so good things about Lopez: they sure haven’t got a talent for memorable titles (intentionally?), as the best they could come up with are songs like “Sincere”, “Spellcheck”, “Rock and Roll” and “Warm Sun”, plus a fourth track lingering in the limbo of the Untitled; here and then, they show a talent for sounding even too mainstream, that is like any other surf band from the West Coast, despite being Londoners. Hey, isn’t it the Yanks who usually lift from the Brits, rather than the other way round? However, this is really entertaining and clever music, and these guys are righteously claiming a place in the sun, which could be deservedly theirs when the warm sun (doh!) will be kissing our cheeks again.