Music: Welcome to the Soft (Pack) parade

Strapping young lads: The Soft Pack

Los Angeles-based foursome The Soft Pack took the words of David Lee Roth to heart when the Van Halen frontman said: “The first rule of rock’n'roll is if it sounds good, it is good.” With DLR’s sage advice ringing in their ears, they set about recording their second album, Strapped.

Track: The Soft Pack – Saratoga

File under: smart but simple rock that harks back to 60s garage, 70s punk and 80s college rock

Formerly – and, we’d hazard, rather unwisely – known as The Muslims, The Soft Pack took their time making Strapped, recording it over the course of two years.

This pace allowed them to integrate new ideas and approaches into their existing sound. Their pop-rock foundations are undeniably still present – nine of the songs don’t break three minutes, and from the first seconds of glorious opener Saratoga it’s obvious they haven’t abandoned the fuzz.

That said, they’ve also spent a lot of time listening to Denim, Momus, The Church, Grace Jones, INXS, Carole King, Lee Hazelwood, The Byrds, and Elton John…

Listen to the aforementioned Saratoga below. Strapped is scheduled for release on October 1.