Roaming somewhere in Michigan is a band with killer jangle instincts, a dash of #c86 DIY creativity, and influences ranging across decades of popular music. Over the past year The Photocopies have released 32 songs, mostly in two to three song increments, and the results have been a consistently wild and fun ride. Their story begins June 2021 with the release of the band’s first double A-sided single, “Good Riddance” and “Kind of Old,” both vibing a more garage version of The Primitives. A month later the single combo Mozzers things up in the lyrics on “Just Shut Your Mouth” while “Autocorrect” offers up a nice 1960s rough beach feel. The September trio of songs is another resplendent sixties love letter, made obvious with material like “Sha La La La La La La La La (Sha La La La La La)” and “Radio City.” But a few months later December witnessed more than just a change of season. “It’s Not Complicated” showcases a more distinctive guitar sound while the melodic heft of the tune is reminiscent of The Cure. 2021 closed out on a dour but still rocking note with “Better Than Nothing, I Suppose,” performed, again, in a very Primitives register to my ears.

Into the new year the style of the releases changed again, this time fattening the jangle and offering a more sophisticated melody on “I Don’t Want You to Want Me.” March continued with innovation: the Triple B-side release had the Pansy Division-like “Something More” and the Buzzcocks-ish “Pop Quiz,” the latter featuring manic, hilarious lyrics. April’s offering stretched to four songs but the standout track for me was “Inside Out Upside Down” with its 1960s go-go-dancing good-time atmosphere. The short instrumental “Glass Elevator” was also a delightfully camp inclusion. May’s release contained a few surprises, like “The Not Knowing” which seemed reminiscent of New Order if they’d dialled down the synth. June boasted another winning trio of strong songs, though “(Wishing I Had) Tickets to St. Etienne” is the obvious should-be hit single. After full year of surprises this month witnessed the band deliver their first official extended play release Between You and Me and I’m liking where year 2 is going. There’s the mellow jangle of “Somebody’s Fool” and the rollicking neo-early 1960s romps “Vexed” and “Anywhere Without You.”

You won’t need to worry about spilt printer ink with The Photocopies. Just hit the multiple copies button and enjoy the performance.