Fusing power-pop with 1990s alternative rock, the members of
Skycycle saw to it that their five-song debut EP,
Breathing Water, was melodic as well as hard-edged. On the power-pop side, it's clear that
Skycycle is well aware of
the Beatles and
Cheap Trick. But on the alternative side,
Skycycle's more obvious influences range from
XTC and
Big Star to
Jane's Addiction -- although tunes like "Last Girl on Earth," "Radioactive" and "Junior" aren't nearly as metallic, abrasive or dissonant as that band could be. Also, there are times when
Breathing Water brings to mind
Teenage Fanclub. Not a brilliant album but a decent one,
Breathing Water indicated that
Skycycle was a band that the alternative rock world should keep an eye on. ~ Alex Henderson