This is a review of "43" recorded by The Debuts. The review was written by Nick Rowan in 2007.

Having recently received the Futuresound nod of approval, Halifax’s The Debuts are on the up and up. These two tracks, their first shot at recorded material, display a nuanced indie-pop sound that is well-balanced if (understandably) a little raw.

It’s pretty obvious that they do possess the necessary talent to succeed, including (but not limited to) Sam Marns’ rock-solid drumwork, some sharp guitar hooks and Zandra Kleivens’ voice. There’s a slacker feel to her vocals, sort of a half-mumbled, half-sung delivery, although thankfully nothing that sounds too measured or stylised.

‘Get Set Go’ is the keeper. Driven along at the beginning by drums and guitar, the chorus has a subtle change of tempo which is nicely offset by handclaps. Kleivens briefly assumes control over the dominant guitars; “Oh don’t you know? / I think you do / I know you better than you’ll ever know me”.

With a date at the Leeds festival unsigned stage on the horizon and positive reviews following them around like a shadow it looks as if these kids will be alright.