RADAR REDUX: Arthur Beatrice

We tipped you last November to Arthur Beatrice, a London-based, rather secretive (sm)art/pop quartet fronted by dual vocalists Orlando Leopard and Ella Girardot and, yes, monikered on a twist on the name of the late actress Bea Arthur. A Facebook blurb refers to the low-profile band's "heart aching mini-epics of brutal beauty, pitching harsh lyrical hooks against a glorious expanse of piano and melting vocals" while The Guardian's Paul Lester astutely sees a cross between The Smiths (when Leopard sings) and The Sundays (when Girardot sings). We hear a shining, shimmering example of cooly detached, progressive -- and distinctly British -- indie pop, exemplified on the Girardot-sung singles "Midland" and the recently released "Not Without Thinking" along with the Leopard-led "What We Hoped to Achieve" and "Charity" which along with "Thinking", help set the stage for the band's debut longplayer early next year. We're expecting big things.

Arthur Beatrice - "Not Without Thinking"

Arthur Beatrice - "Charity"

And watch an in-studio performance of "Charity" here...

Ella Giradot of Arthur Beatrice