Irish four-piece The Academic dropped their debut album Tales From The Backseat in 2018 to positive reviews, it’s blend of youthful exuberance and noughties-inspired indie, as well as the band’s reputation for exhilarating live shows, winning them fans both in the UK and at home in Ireland, where it hit number one in the Irish Album Charts. They built on that momentum last year with Acting My Age, a six-track EP recorded with Nick Hodgson of the Kaiser Chiefs that spawned the single of the same title, a mainstay of their live sets.

Fans of the band, then, would have been hoping for a new album, but instead will have to make do for now with The Community Spirit, not a full length release, but rather another new EP comprising five tracks that the band have entirely written, produced and recorded themselves. 

Writing on their official Facebook page about their approach with the new EP, the band said: “Community Spirit represents a back to basics approach for us as a band. These five songs are entirely self produced and were recorded in our bedrooms in the villages we grew up in. We can’t wait for you all to hear them and we hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed making them.”

Not Your Summer opens the record and is an enjoyable indie affair with a neat Smiths-esque riff, while Smart Mouth’s own riff builds on the opener, layering in a strong bassline for good measure. The Academic’s sound is something of a throwback, with I Don’t See Good actually feeling like a song that’s been directly influenced by Hodgson and his bandmates. For The Camera builds from it’s slow start into a bouncing finale, while the EP’s lead single Kids (Don’t End Up Like Me) skips along with pace.

Overall, the EP is one that charts the young band growing up and refining their identity, and while a new album will hopefully follow, there’s enough new material here to keep fans happy. 

The Community Spirit EP tracklist:

1. Not Your Summer
2. Smart Mouth
3. I Don’t See Good
4. For The Camera
5. Kids (Don’t End Up Like Me)

Watch the official video for Kids (Don’t End Up Like Me) here. 

Author: Joe Sharratt

Joe Sharratt is a writer and journalist based in the UK covering music, literature, sport, and travel.