While Jonquil may proclaim themselves as “Paul Simon’s take on the Smiths,” what I hear on the One Hundred Suns EP is an Afrobeat take on XTC. You can imagine the indie pop’s chiming guitars and incessantly interesting drums being inspired by Congrotronics after also listening to XTC’s sunny album, Oranges & Lemons. The vocals are falsetto harmonies akin to Bon Iver.
I don’t think I hear the Smiths in the sound, but is Paul Simon present, then, as they describe themselves? I suppose in that Graceland connection. For me, though, they might be better served on One Hundred Suns to describe themselves as an Afrobeat XTC played by Bon Iver.
