I Was Recently Accused Of Being Twee And This Won't Help Things

Get out your Bintang singlet and crack a longie - everything’s coming up South East Asia: 97% of Sydney residents aged 18-29 went to Thailand over the summer; Mi Goreng is still the biggest bargain in the world; Chang is spreading through bottleshops; and the world’s coolest barman is Laotian.* Not wanting to be left behind, the music scene has decided to produce something truly unique: White Shoes & The Couples Company, from Indonesia. The name is obviously amazing, but it’s their sound that is the truly attractive aspect to the band. In the same way Cuban son is so evocative of the idealised rum-and-sunsets vision of Cuba (thanks, Buena Vista Social Club), WS&TCC have a jazz-influenced retro pop sound that forces you to think of beach holidays on the shores of our northern neighbours. While devastatingly saccharine at times, it is more infectious than a weird tropical disease, and you can't help but forgive the bubblegum pop and Muzak influences. There's a certain laid-back breezy jazz sound throughout that instantly brings to mind Antonio Carlos Jobim. Perhaps most importantly, it is FUN and REFRESHING and RELAXING. Like when you first heard those Bossa Nova mixes and wanted to hang out on Ipanema with a Caipirinha.

(And yeah, the whole being-Indonesian-mods thing is pretty cool too.)

White Shoes & The Couples Company - Senandung Maaf

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*Dude at Rue Bebelons in Melbourne. He offers free beer if you pick his nationality. Now you can go there and cheat.