Karl (sampler), Masid (drums), Miquel (bass), Rafa (guitar) and Coma (guitar and vocals) are the five Spaniards who form The Dirt Tracks. Never Been to Mars is the bands first attempt to break the British market and will be available on 26 September 2011.

Opening track Never Been to Mars is traditional indie pop music, opening as it does with fuzzy guitars and standard drum pattern, before a warped noise brings the vocals in. Vocally things are fine, although the chorus “I’ve Never Been to Mars, Never Seen the Stars” isn’t going to set many hearts alight and maybe that is ultimately the problem with Never Been to Mars, it’s alright and will appeal to indie kids looking for something new, but it never really challenges the listener.

House of Dolls begins much milder with a gentle guitared opening, although the track complete with vocals builds up to a moment that has similar feelings to Muse’s less expansive works. The juxtaposition of the gentle opening with the Muse or even Radiohead Bends era chorus will please many listeners, but it just feels like a track that fills up nearly five minutes of this single release.

The Square is the final track that ends the album and at over six minutes is a pretty expansive piece. If you read House of Dolls as being The Bends era Radiohead, then certainly The Square is OK Computer era Radiohead. The opening is all effect riven guitars and gentle vocals, that soar and eventually turn falsetto in style, complete with acoustic guitar solo. Yet there just feels like that there’s too much here that tries to be a Paranoid Android for 2011. You will either go two ways with this track, you’ll either be in the Radiohead camp that music needs to evolve from this point to the experimental jazz rock fusion that permeates much of their music now – others will love the return to music that they once loved and lost – however, what’s wrong with digging out your copy of OK Computer or The Bends?

The problem is that to emulate a band like Radiohead or even turn out more iconic music, then you really do need to produce music of great quality. However, The Dirt Tracks are never going to achieve that level and would be better placed to move away from that Radiohead-esque sound. It remains to be seen if The Dirt Tracks can replicate their success in Britain and maybe live they are particularly excitable, but it just feels like there’s too much retrospective indie notion for Never Been to Mars to really take off.

Reviewed by Jimbo Walsh.

The Dirt Tracks debut British single Never Been to Mars is released on 26 September 2011 although it is available to download now from Amazon.