The March Greens, You Shall Go to the Ball EP

review by dave heaton

The title to this three-song EP by the March Greens comes from the end of the first song “Cinders”. “Cheer up / you shall go to the ball”, the line goes. In its description of a first date it echoes the Cinderella tale, but the burnt embers alluded to in the title seem indicative of our narrator’s general tone. First dates are a dime a dozen, as full of hope and anticipation as they can be. In other words, “this is how it always starts”, as the March Greens’ Spencer Bayles softly croons. That sensitive croon is part of this EP’s appeal; there’s tenderness in his singing even when the lyrics suggest the inevitability of failure. It helps too that the melodies themselves are gorgeous, the arrangements soft-pop in the absolute best sense. Across the three songs our protagonist wishes for someone to come along and be a savior or, on “Manhattan”, for a city to reach out and pull him in. That saving never happens, but hey, at least there’s these lush pop songs to fall back upon.

{www.themarchgreens.co.uk}