Four songs. That’s the extent of Temples’ recording catalog to date, but that’s all that’s needed for artists like Johnny Marr and Noel Gallagher to express their admiration. And it’s easy to hear why: “Shelter Song,” the first song that Temples did together, reverberates with sounds pulled from nearly every decade of rock and roll. Crystalline pop is certainly one thing that Marr and Gallagher know well, and they can see that Temples might be continuing in that tradition.
But the group almost didn’t come together. Bassist Tom Warmsley and singer/guitarist James Bagshaw grew up in “rival bands” in their hometown of Kettering, England. It’s a city more known for being the headquarters to Weetabix than for its pyschedelic pop, but that didn’t stop Warmsely and Bagshaw from joining forces last summer. They began working on songs in Bagshaw’s tiny bedroom, fleshing them out in recording sessions that had to stop before ten o’clock each night so as not to disturb the neighbors. The duo released the songs online, and within months had a following.
Though they didn’t intend to become a touring band, Warmsley and Bagshaw quickly realized that they needed to take their music on the road. Enter drummer Sam Toms and keyboardist Adam Smith, and the quartet quickly gelled into a formidable live force. This summer, Temples performed at BST Hyde Park, a London music festival that also featured a little band called the Rolling Stones. Temples appear to be heading straight for rarefied air, especially on their debut single, out July 23 here in the States. “Colours To Life” sounds like a musical conversation with fellow psych-rockers Tame Impala, but Temples add their own sun-dappled charm to the proceedings.
