Sweater vibes and seaside-pop: Adam Hopper & The Wimps’ ‘Robin Hood’s Bay’
The band share the b-side of their 7” vinyl release.
Photo: Alexis Panidis
Robin Hood’s Bay is as lovably English and eccentric as it is genuinely catchy. What starts life as a simple, primordial bluesy number becomes a dreamy ode to a village in North Yorkshire. With lines like, “And if you’ve got a penchant for the Palaeolithic / Then I know a cave with some paintings in it”, it’s tough to envision this as some indie rock anthem for the summer.
But it’s lovably quaint, bobbed along by frontman Adam Hopper’s vocals which share a remarkable likeness to that of The Vaccines’ Justin Young. Percussionist Niamh Purtill joins Hopper, bringing the childlike wonder of someone looking out upon the sea for the first time. It’s a gentle frolic in the rockpools of North England, set to a timeless blues-folk melody a la dream-pop artists Teenage Waitress and Beach House, as much as established groups like Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – particularly in the latter’s Mojo era. I’m still not convinced that ‘anti-folk’ is a real thing, but Adam Hopper & The Wimps are onto something all the same.
Like Dancers Do / Robin Hood’s Bay on 7” vinyl is out now via Bingo Records.