Merk’s digital release is a colourful trip down nostalgia lane. From the get go we are met by lo-fi beats and twangy synths as playful as the early production heard on Deep Sea Divers by Darwin Deez. Wonderbuzz is reminiscent of Miike Snow as Merk’s falsetto floats above the toe tapping beat throughout the chorus. 22-year old Mark Perkins shines bright on this solo effort which was written, recorded, produced and mixed by himself with additional help from Alexander Wildwood and Ben Jeffares. Djeisan Suskov is credited with mastering. Manchuria sounds as dreamy as The Last High by The Dandy Warhols, powered by lush distorted guitars and Merk’s clean and unwavering voice. The melancholic piano chords in Melody are reminiscent of the quiet before the storm experience in listening to a Queen ballad. The record feels like an instant classic and you’d be fooling yourself not to get it on cassette! Across Spotify and Soundcloud ‘Swordfish’ has about 70,000 plays which is impressive for a debut album that didn’t have much media surrounding its release. Even more striking is how Merk has managed to keep his project short and sweet at 25 minutes, whilst showing off his skills as musician and producer.