The Pooches

The Pooches are an indie-pop quartet that originally began as the solo recording project of songwriter Jimmy Hindle in 2013. The band is from Glasglow, and they share the same unhurried pep that has long characterized fellow natives such as Belle & Sebastian and Teenage Fanclub. Yet Hindle deserves credit for staying true to his hometown sound while still standing out for his individual strengths, such as a level-headed, honeydew-sweet cadence and a way of making his vocal tone inseparable from the melody. The band released their delightful debut EP Heart Attack earlier this year and are returning with a full-length later this summer, the first single from which we’re premiering today.
A “Mulligan” is a do-over, essentially a second chance that overrides the first. It’s a term informally tossed around in golf, and occasionally in card games when you draw a poor hand, but is rarely used in regards to relationships. Which is odd, because the term captures so succinctly the tenuous rationale behind getting back together with an ex — that the first time couldn’t repeat itself the second, that history doesn’t predict the future, and that the problem wasn’t the players, but the timing. Thankfully Hindle put together the analogy and gifted us a track perfectly encapsulating the concept.

“Mulligan” is a simple, three-minute reflection of looking again to the past for the answers you still can’t find in the present. Alongside a zig-zagging bassline and a wind-chiming guitar, Hindle forgives a former lover in his desperation of needing somewhere to go. He hasn’t forgotten the messages he wished he had been sent or the feelings he never seemed to sense, but he’s human enough to long for the company in spite of it all. While at first Hindle sings that he’ll feel better if “you will be with me tonight,” he subsequently reveals what he truly desires with a simple switch of pronouns, that he actually hopes “I will be with you tonight.” Sometimes when we feel lonely it’s not really about being with that someone else, but about not being alone. - Stereogum

The Pooches are an indie-pop band from Glasgow, and yes, the inevitable influence of Belle & Sebastian is apparent in their winsome new Heart Attack EP. But project mastermind Jimmy Hindle has a distinctive songwriting voice of his own, one that refracts his delicately bouncy story-songs through a library of other foundational pop-rock sounds — among them the sunshine choogle of the early Beach Boys, Big Star’s muscular yet dreamy power-pop, Paul Simon’s gentle and tropical solo work, and the Kinks at their punchiest. Today we’re sharing EP’s title track, an understated and lovable bit of songcraft about the NYC hardcore band Heart Attack. It suggests the Pooches could someday become cult favorites themselves. Listen below. - Stereogum

Written by Patrick McNamara

The Pooches is a super catchy peppy good goddamn jingle jangle indie pop band from Glasgow. They're good.

The snappy band (comprised of Jimmy + Gav + Calvin + Andy) recently released a solid four song EP called “Heart Attack" on Philadelphia's Lame-O Records - home to Modern Baseball (wow that's a really old profile) and more fine artists. If you play the entire thing below (and you totally should - it's 8 minutes of pure delight) you might find yourself in a MUCH better mood than when you first started reading this thing.

Go ahead. Try it.

Feeling better? I thought so!

Since that listening experience surely left you wanting MORE here's another EP by The Pooches. it's called "Dinner Date" and was released only a few months before "Heart Attack." It's also an 8-minute delight.

The Pooches have a bunch of releases, actually.

Go ahead and love this one too.

Love them all.

Thank you for listening and I'm glad to see you're feeling better.

Now get back to work. - Oh My Rockness