The Kowloons - Roll Up - A Proper Slice of Britpop Pie

The Kowloons. I hadn’t heard of them till yesterday but they have been around a few years – and this is their new single, Roll Up.  Maybe it should have been called Roll Back, because this is very, very Britpop (and that’s not a criticism as far as I am concerned).  As far as boxes go, there are a few ticks.  They are from Merseyside, which is always a good sign for a poptastic four piece.  Tick.

Then, half of the band is made up of a set of twins, Stephen Ng (vocals) and Anthony Ng (drums) – I mean, that has to be another tick, right?  Then there is a certain mystery without a tour - I have no idea, for example, whether the band name (from the area in Hong Kong) and the last name of the twins (a common name in China) is anything more than coincidence! Yeah, tick. Completing the lineup are Mason Jones (guitar) and Bobby Griffiths (bass). And two Welsh surnames had to be yet another tick…

You probably know already that I like the song, because why else would I be reviewing it? It’s lyrically spare, but the essentials come across really well. In a nutshell, the song seems to be about going through emotional turmoil or intense feelings, but trying to cope and escape through the night, whether that’s partying, staying up, or just “rolling with it” until things feel okay again.  In other words, have some fun and you’ll be OK.  This is a proper slice of Britpop pie.  I will definitely discover some more of their songs before the sun comes out again.

Watch the video below.