It’s a solid effort from Buchanan, who have clearly isolated their anthemic indie-rock sound and called it their own, in a powerful and tonally varied debut.

Single ‘Run Faster’, a triple j favourite of 2012 and easily one of the standouts on this debut is how you might remember Australian band Buchanan (pronounced ‘Bew-Cannon’). Human Spring, their debut album, is doused in all the uplifting alternative-pop-rock substance one could hope for.

Led by the talented Josh Simons, Buchanan specialise in clear vocals tangled in and amongst powerful driving drums and guitars that deftly avoid becoming obnoxious and retain a sense of understated force. Title track ‘Human Spring’ masters this recipe to perfection as Simons’ earnest vocals coax you into a sing-along, unavoidably so in the repetitive “Ain’t got no violent heart / Still we will make our mark”. The video clip for ‘Human Spring’ is one to look up, especially if you appreciate an unsavoury underdog winning a small-town talent show with a killer display of his enviable air-guitar skills.

The album is also speckled with lighter songs like ‘For Tonight We Rest (Leaves)’. Vocal harmonies add depth to already existing subtleties and comforting echoes, which delicately fill the song in a steady build, long before any electric guitars come in.

A few songs fall into generic Chris Martin anthem territory and in these, the efforts of a star-casted production team really do come to the rescue. Human Spring was produced by Catherine Marks (Foals, Interpol) with the help of Tim Cross (Mike Oldfield), mixed by Andy Baldwin (Bjork, Midnight Juggernauts), and mastered at Abbey Road by Geoff Pesche, who’s worked with the awe-inspiring likes of LCD Soundsystem and Radiohead.

*** out of five stars

BY KATIE DAVERN

Human Spring is out now.

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