Goldrush

The Times
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Named after a Neil Young album, Goldrush dream of some melodic seventies singer-songwriter heaven. But as with Starsailor, another band obsessed with the same golden age in rock mythology, there is far more to the Oxfordshire quintet than mere nostalgia. The dewy pop freshness of lovingly crafted tunes such as Wide Open Sky, Landscape and Same Picture recalls Neil Finn, and fans of Travis should also find 'Don't Bring Me Down' worthy of further investigation. But despite their influences, Goldrush manage never to sound derivative on a debut of surging confidence and poise. - The Times

Mojo
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'Grand country rock weepiness plus, on Oxford quintet's debut'

Goldrush moved into Abbey Road Studios the day George Harrison died. Did the grievous mood colour proceedings? Actually, the title track dates from 2000 but the mood of trembling despondency throughout is tangible. Country rock is their template, but Oxford landmarks Radiohead and Ride have elft their mark. With its 1970s weightiness, 'Don't Bring Me Down' richly transcends alt country trends: Landscape could be Traffic, Bright Eyes echoes The Band. Egged on by singer Robin Bennett's husky, verge-of-tears tone, Pioneers and Best Intentions could even be those reigning princes of sadness Elbow, relocated to a sun-whipped Joshua Tree (Gram Parsons would approve of Bennett's lyrical directness - for Best Intentions read Hot Burrito \1). Goldrush can do 'happy' (Same Picture, Wide Open Sky) but they're not fooling anyone. Long may they cry their eyes out. - Martin Aston

The Independent
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After a bad and brief experience on Virgin, Goldrush bounce back quickly on their own esteemed Truck label, with a seven track mini-album that marks a fine period of transition. Live favourite 'Let You Down' gets a beautiful production by Dave Fridmann, while the brand new 'Counting Song' gives it a run for its money. - Tim Perry

Time Out
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My mother once said - after she dumped her horrific '80s-fave white boiler suit at the charity shop - that only classic pieces stand the test of time. 'Course, she's always right.

Oxford five-piece Goldrush - who supported The Flaming Lips on their recent tour - are not trendy. And the lush, yearning, beautifully spun songs that seep form this debut are aeons away from the thrashed-out three-chord wonders being championed by the current spate of talk-of-the-town bew-wave garage-punk bands. But neither are they cold and conservative.
Fronted by the founders of the Truck label and festival, brothers Robin, 22, and Joe Bennett, 21 (previously known as Whispering Bob), Goldrush take the components of classic songwriting - emotion-drenched lyrics and inspiring melodies - and flood them with truly individual style.

The soft pianos, theremins, Grandaddy-esque electronic effects, slide guitars and psychadelic rock-outs crammed into the Bennett's music make 'DBMD' sound like a mature and soaring sonic indulgence. But the tenderness and innocent openness of their lyrics betray their age. They hide nothing. Hurt and happiness tumble out unrestrained by fear. While one song shund regret - the clear glistening guitar pop of the uplifting current sinlge 'Wide OPen Sky' or the gorgeously melancholic 'Don't Bring Me Down' or the dreamy, Mercury Rev-like 'Best Intentions' - is a hopeless lament to a blundered opportunity.

Goldrush aren't miles away from a more instrumentally ambitious Coldplay. And like the little black dress, they're here to stay. - Alexia Loudras

Uncut
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'First full length from Oxfordshire five-piece once known to the world as Whispering Bob' Enlisting Lenni (Tricky/Bjork) Franchi as co-producer, Goldrush's debut comes fresh from support slots with The Flaming Lips and a quietly compelling string of singles on their own Truck label. 'Don't Bring Me Down' is frequently startling, less for the odd storm cloud of angsty Radiohead guitar but more for the subtly boiling layers of folksy, English country fair acoustica, nifty surprises (a tuba parping its way through 'Bright Eyes') and especially for the singer Robin Bennett's pained Nick Drake tremble. - Rob Hughes

Q
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'Oxford folky pop troupe's assured, melodic debut'
It's been a wee while since quality pop shook its melodic mane, as boy bands, wannabe Portisheads and faux dancers have blocked the way. Oxford quintet Goldrush tip their hat to the usual pantheon - quiet period Neil Young, Crowded House, non-pubby Beatles - but at their best (the appropriately titled Wide Open Sky might just remind Fran Healy of himself), they have the urgency of The Lightning Seeds. They bring new touches to the table too. The choral coda to Don't Bring Me Down, the disco instroduction to She Comes Around and the refined Coldplay that is Bright Eyes (not that one) testify to a talent willing to push the boundaries, but even more willing to surrender to a winning tune. Delightful. - John Aizlewood

Logo
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An interesting collaboration this, and one that brings out the best of both parties by leading them into less familiar territory. Mark Gardener, lest we forget, was a central pillar of Oxford's Ride who, for a time, looked like they were set to be the biggest of the big three (the other two being, of course, Supergrass and Radiohead). Here the shuffling shoe-gazing ethic of early Ride is replaced by a tauter, more urgent edge, while the featherlight (dare we say, occasionally anodyne) indie of Goldrush is forced to step outside the house and look to the horizon. It's a halfway house that suits both parties exceptionally well, and on the evidence of recent live shows together we'd be doing ourselves a disservice if we don't organise a petition to keep this lot together. - Susie Q