More about: The Reytons

“And they called them Reytons!” comes the rallying cry on ‘Kids Off The Estate’, the final track of The Reytons’ debut album of the same name. The line can be traced back to the band's 2017 K.O.T.E. EP, and having it round off this album makes it feel as if they’ve come full circle.

The Reytons have got the Northern working-class tales accompanied by the flavour of intense indie that made Arctic Monkeys so popular in the mid-2000s, but in all honesty it’s not the most original comparison one could make. Though they're from South Yorkshire and have made the odd reference to the band in their lyrics, there’s plenty of crossover in terms of fans and much of it is pints-in-the-air music that fits somewhere like Neighbourhood Weekender down to a T...The Reytons' music nevertheless is full of honesty, originality and heart. 

Frontman Jonny Yerrell has the confident swagger needed to put the band among the big boys, and it’s something the four-piece have definitely earned after time spent building their reputation. The Reytons aren’t industry plants cosplaying as working-class Sheffield lads while living off mummy and daddy: that they sold out the O2 Academy in Sheffield while unsigned is testament to the high esteem they’re held in around the area. 

Second track ‘Antibiotics’ is an instant earworm with the infectious refrain of “He'll take everything that he can/’Cause she's a foolish girl and he's a red blooded man”, while ‘What You Fighting For’ is a little more pop and ‘Broke Boys Cartel’ isn’t entirely unlike the tunes we saw from Irish teens The Strypes a few years ago, but the bluesy, rock-and-roll feel is paired up with more indie mettle. 

The chugging garage rock of ‘Car Crash’ is the sort of thing we’ve been crying out for from the seemingly never-ending conga line of bands trotted out as the Next Big Thing, while ‘Landslide’ is reminiscent of the Courteeners’ ‘Are You In Love With A Notion’, though certainly no carbon copy. The Reytons know their audience, you feel, but at the same time are making the music they want to make, and look firmly ready to take up the mantle of South Yorkshire’s next indie darlings.

Kids Off The Estate arrives 24 September.

More about: The Reytons