Similar Kind – Good Grief!

Indie Pop | Funk

83%

 

They say that if you do what you love then you’ll never work a day in your life. Sadly that’s not always the case. Sometimes you instead drain some of the enjoyment away from something you were once passionate about. I certainly have days like that. It can be exhausting always pursuing new music, having to keep moving on to the next release to keep on top of my to-do list, not having as much time as I’d like to sit with a record, or delve into a band’s back catalogue. I am currently (as ever), miles behind on new releases, with a list of albums as long as my arm which I was hoping to cover but will probably never get around to. Yet I find myself with little desire to rattle through them as quickly as possible. In fact, whenever I get a spare moment as of late to listen to music, there’s really only been one record that I find myself wanting to listen to. 

Good Grief! has been my reflex record for the past few weeks; the album I find myself instinctively reaching for, without a second thought, whenever I put music on. I’d hope all it will take is the first few seconds of ‘Search Party’ for you to understand why. There’s no mystery or subtlety, it just throws the album’s whole vibe and energy right in your face. “Party” is the operative word here. It’s such a fun time. The way the bass dances and flaunts all over the first verse, the effervescent vocals taking an already superb hook to new levels. The way the sax riff plays just once each go round, rather than repeating a second time, letting this little moment of anticipation draw you in. It opens the record on such a high bar, but Similar Kind do an admirable job of keeping that degree of energy and quality going. 

‘Caught Up’ delves into a darker pop tone, with a bittersweet bass driven melancholy reminiscent of The Cure. ‘Let Me Go’ sees the band dial the funk factor up a notch, while ‘iwishwehadmoretime’ is a tale of two halves. The slow, sensual romanticism of the first half, with melodies that remind me a little of Journey’s ‘Why Can’t This Night Go On Forever’ in places, gives way to a sudden vibe shift that injects more energy into the bass and sax for final minute or so. Closing track ‘Peace of Mind (Everything Everywhere)’ has a wealth of Bleachers energy that bookends the record beautifully, but it’s the infectious indie pop earworm of ‘Idle Brain’ that leaves the most lasting impression. A frenetic arrangement and irresistible hook worthy of contention for song of the year. 

Similar Kind’s debut really delivers for the most part. At times it does feel like they’re sticking a little too close to their comfort zone, and are already re-treading familiar ground. ‘Goodbye’ would feel like a pretty by-the-numbers affair were it not for the inspired key change in the finale, and I’m still not sure whether the melodies in the stripped back balladry of ‘Home’ are an intentional call-back to ‘Search Party’, or the band arrived at a similar melody by accident. And even when the band are firing on all cylinders, there is still a lot of room left for them to grow. The saxophone never quite makes my heart soar, but it does often put a smile on my face. The bass grooves don’t seize control of my body like some dad-dancing marionette, but they’ve injected a lot of party vibes into my life lately. The vocals never quite go above and beyond and wow me, but they always bring the energy that the song needs. Good Grief! may not be anything exceptional, but it is heaps of fun, and perhaps right now that’s more important. It’s sure to be one of my most listened to records of 2025, and will undoubtedly have me dancing around my kitchen for many more weeks to come.