Indie is Indie all over the world.
Indie is indie the world over isn't it? Sure, the fashion changes and there are local differences but at the end of the day, a whiny little ditty about some girl that's left you is only going to differentiate so much. To this extent, Koufax may hail from Ohio in the States but they could have easily grown up in the same side streets as Shed Seven or Keane.
A touch of Coldplay in the keyboard intro, a nod to The Smiths with the chirping guitar and vocals which cross between Rick Witter, Tim Burgess and Brandon Flowers. It may all have been done before but 'Isabelle' has its charm, like a repeated 1970s sitcom, there's an underlying familiarity about the song that has wraps around the listener.
It'll probably pass you by the first few times you hear it but after some repeated listens; it will sink in...but not much. The bonus acoustic version, for all its stripped down nature, comes across far better, changing the song to a vibrant cross between The Libertines and The Smiths, and for all the production that's missing, it works better than the lead version yet still fails to leave a massive imprint.
If 'Isabelle' was to come back, like the song repeats over and over, it can only be hoped that Koufax would have more gems to serenade her with as it gets a bit whiny near the end. No wonder the poor girl ran away if this was all the fare that was being served up to her, hopefully the album will contain more life and originality.