The Thrills - Teenager

Three years on from the unfairly criticised ‘Let’s Bottle Bohemia’, and The Thrills have eschewed the sights and smells of their beloved West Coast US for the dark roads and memories of their hometown Dublin and their formative years there.

This shift in sources of inspiration instils in ‘Teenager’ whiffs of regret and strains of nostalgia, steeped as it is in the concept of the band’s youth, but all painted with the sunny optimism so closely associated with The Thrills.
The enchanting regression covers the ennui of going home (‘Nothing Changes Round Here’), lost relationships (the lovely ‘I’m So Sorry’) and the glimmer of hope (‘There’s Joy To Be Found’), decorated with the group’s heartening close harmonies and Conor Deasy’s soaring voice. In going back they’ve bravely moved forward, delivering a beautiful study of adolescence from a decade’s hindsight, truly poignant and deserving of your time and attention. “This year could be our year”, Conor pleads, and on this evidence I’d surely agree.