PIAS Vinyl & CDs

Review: Second time around for the Bees' terrific debut album, Sunshine Hit Me, which wowed critics and buyers alike on its initial release way back in 2001. The epitome of a surprise hit with admirably DIY roots - the duo behind it, Paul Butler and Aaron Fletcher, famously recorded it in a limited home studio built in the back garden of a residential house on the Isle of Wight - the album has lost none of its allure all these years on. Woozy, summery and lo-fi, with hazy horns and glassy-eyed vocals rising above backing tracks that variously doff a cap to soul, rocksteady, ska, 1960s dream pop, psychedelia and a wealth of subtle global musical influences, Sunshine Hit Me is a warming, smile-inducing treat. This edition also boasts a sextet of bonus cuts, which seem to be a mixture of B-sides and tracks plucked from the pair's archives.