From the moment the first riff is busted out on New Young Pony Club’s Fantastic Playroom, you know you’re in for a high energy treat. The five piece UK indie popsters headed up by Andy Spence and Tahita Bulmer are fun, fresh and funky. A great blend of rock, pop and a hint of electronica that loosely fits into the (caution: dirty word coming) ‘New Wave’ genre.

The first single and opening track Get Lucky is red hot. The guitar work from Spence is outstanding and Bulmer’s vocals are as pleasurable to listen to as well as being amusing. Witness fan David Bowie’s favourite line: “Let your girlfriend do what your boyfriend can’t.” For a more electronic vibe, Hiding On The Staircase is a frantic mix of sounds, guitars and made up words. Confusianity anyone? Second single Ice Cream, which was re-released this July is excellent, Spence’s guitars are again outstanding.

My favourite track on the album is probably The Bomb, not surprisingly lifted as a single, and Spence’s guitar work yet again stands out, nice and heavy with a good dose of grit. This is great music to jump around and dance to; the Blondie influences are strong in this track as it turns anthemic.

Things are dropped down a notch with The Get Go, a more sullen side of Bulmer’s voice shows as opposed to the punky party vibe we are exposed to on the rest of the album. We slow down even more on the dark Talking, Talking. Not sure what inspired this track but it wasn’t pretty. The drum work on this album from Sarah Jones is quality, especially in F.A.N., a nice broken beat vibe comes through as things lean towards a more electronic direction.

It is little surprise these guys are doing well for themselves, their intelligent pop vibe is infectious and sure to start any party. With a hint of Peaches, a dash of Talking Heads and sniff of The Rapture, New Young Pony Club have come together to bring us a quintessential pop album: fun, not too serious but not overly bubblegum either.

In a word: Funtastic.

Check out the clip for the band’s hit single Ice Cream.