Oscar - Cut and Paste

North London sunshine kid Oscar Scheller neatly dices R&B with indie-pop on his (aptly titled) debut Cut and Paste.

Sometimes is a dizzying and uplifting opener with catchy lyrics next to fuzzy guitars, but what follows is mostly more placid. Be Good to Good Things spans just nine minutes but quality subdues quantity; lo-fi beats tie melodically into blistering guitars, Scheller’s deep vocals throwing in an unexpected twist and rescuing tunes that could easily slip into landfill indie territory. Marika Hackman lends angelic vocals to Only Friend, a soulful number with twinkling sequencers backing the two singers.

A bluesy theme fills the second half, most notably on Breaking My Phone, which zig-zags between grumbly verses and a truly 21st century blend of catharsis on every chorus. Fifteen and Gone Forever sit cosily at the end of the record and almost tip the mood to boring, but with only ten tracks on his album (and all exquisitely produced), brevity saves the day for Scheller. But when wonky-pop goodness oozes from every other track, Cut and Paste strikes more like a toe dipped in water for a bright spark with more to give.