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Ok, so first off I must iterate the fact that this particular run down is in no particular order, nor is it a definitive list of the best British record labels of all time (as if such a breakdown could ever be truly quantified). It is simply a list of some personal favourites within the British...MORE>>

Taller Children by Elizabeth and the Catapult sounds like a throwback. Fast-paced electronic music is in vogue on our side of the pond, and whether it’s the funky pop strains of Lady Gaga that get you going or Pendulum’s grittier, bass-heavy fare, you’ll agree on one thing: indie bands are kinda 2005.

But let’s not be unfair. Taller Children, taken from Elizabeth and the Catapult’s debut album of the same name, is an effortlessly upbeat, bluesy little number with a bit of a twist in the middle. Even though it isn’t of the zeitgeist it will charm you if you give it a listen.

Elizabeth and the Catapult are a three-piece from Brooklyn that sound a lot like Feist, Plain White Tees or Peter, Bjorn and John; but with a chirpier pop edge. They formed in 2004, and are composed of sweet-voiced singer Elizabeth Ziman, who is behind the lyrics and much of the orchestration, nonchalant guitarist Pete Lalish and drummer Dan Molad, all alumni of Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Together they make cool, understated, sounds-like-it-was-recorded-in-my-dad’s-garden-shed kinda music. In fact, their producers seem to have tried a little too hard to recreate the imperfections that are par for the course in amateur recordings, and the end result on this track is that Ziman’s gorgeous voice is distorted.

Taller Children kicks off with a gentle bass riff, rhythmic blocks and a touch of tambourine. Drums and vocals come in and the song is off to a playful start. Ziman’s lyrics dress down a ‘Wall Street wonder’ who thinks he’s got the perfect life, informing him that all the airs and graces he’s assumed are fake – ‘in the end we’re all just taller children’. Apparently the track was inspired by the collapse of America’s financial big guns, but it sounds surprisingly relaxed and sanguine considering its subject matter.

The middle eight segues into a passage with an irregular time signature. Ziman’s vocals are thickly layered over repeated piano chords, and the juxtaposition of the chaotic voices overlapping each other, creating odd harmonies, and the solid piano refrain give this part of the song an unsettling feel. It’s this section that injects some welcome urgency and tension, contrasting with the laidback sound of the first part of the song, which comes back again at the end to round it off.

Elizabeth and the Catapult are in the middle of a touring America at the minute, and no doubt their charming indie tunes are providing the perfect soundtrack to the summer over there. But with the likes of La Roux currently dominating the UK charts with fast-paced electro-pop, this is not the right time for them to start their transatlantic campaign, even though Taller Children is a cute track that bodes well for the rest of the album.