A Wiltshire based dream pop duo featuring husband and wife team Carl and Kat Mann, Shapes Like People were formed as a side project to Carl’s indie band The Shop Window. Kat had already provided backing vocals on their ‘Daydream’ LP, but, if stories are to be believed, Carl hadn’t actually considered Kat for his then new project. It’s been jokingly claimed that Shapes Like People came together by accident, but like many happy accidents, the results were impressive. Their debut album ‘Ticking Haze’ played like the ultimate love letter to the 4AD label circa 1991, and although the whole record was enjoyable, between the waltzing time signatures of ‘A New Crown’, the harmony driven ‘Fireworks’ and the Johnny Marr tinged ‘Head Spun’, it offered a trilogy of tracks strong enough to place Shapes Like People among the frontrunners of retro sounding dream pop bands.
Those paying attention to the UK’s indie, shoegaze and dream pop scenes early in 2026 might have already discovered ‘Find Me There’, a fantastic single that actually eclipsed most of the duo’s previous work. A highlight from this long player, with its Cocteau Twins inspired shimmering guitar lines and clean vocals, it wholly understands the elements required to make good dream pop fly. The combination of otherworldly keys and hard strummed guitar that forms the basis of the recording immediately bring back some very positive memories of the 90s, but the retro feel doesn’t end there. The shift from semi acoustic into shimmering electric guitar sounds helps to form a perfect indie/jangle homage falling somewhere between a brilliant homage to the 4AD label and a deep cut from The Sundays, with a melody that’s so familiar, yet feels very welcome. Across these three minutes, Carl and Kat prove themselves a perfect team, with Kat’s ethereal vocal style being a very natural fit for the wonderfully airy music, and the way Carl’s guitar sound builds throughout each verse really helps to create atmosphere on a track that in lesser hands might have felt a little too floaty. This is slightly softer around the edges than some of the previous Shapes Like People recordings, but potentially better for it; a few listens in, and ‘Find Me There’s subtle chorus hook really starts to shine. If you’ve never heard Shapes Like People before, you should seek this out for your first listen. It’s buried halfway through the album, nestled next to a much busier sounding track, but it remains the perfect SLP number.
Almost as strong, ‘Daisy’ places a ringing electric guitar over a hard strummed acoustic, creating a layered sound that’s unfussy yet very summery. Bringing in drums and bass at the end of the first verse, the number has a more solid quality than ‘Find Me There’, but Kat’s vocals retain the same ethereal tone which provides some consistency. The more prominent rhythm really helps Carl to take a bigger role here, though, and despite being a short number, he helps to give it more of an epic feel by pulling everything to a close with a lead guitar break that adds more of an old school indie flourish, without killing the dreamy mood. Better yet is the main melody itself: although it’s clearly Kat at the helm, there’s more than an air of classic Kirsty MacColl at its heart, forming something that feels familiar; something that might just help to bring the duo to a broader audience.
One of the album’s lesser tracks is actually used for the opener. ‘Spiral Back In Time’ couples synth orchestration with a simple guitar riff, initially sounding far more DIY than some of SLP’s best tunes, but slowly, over time, it offers the listener plenty to enjoy. It isn’t until a gentle shuffling drum line arrives for the first chorus that the track’s elements really come together, and even then, if measured against ‘Find Me There’ it still feels a little more “demo like”, but looking beyond the audio sound, the multi-layered vocals are just lovely, and Carl’s brief moments of ringing electric guitar add great atmospherics beneath the number’s main melody. In a slight change of mood, trading in the obviously dreamy aspects for more of a busy indie workout, ‘Life of Time’ pushes the rhythm section a little further forward in the final mix to drive an especially jangly tune, making the results sound like a blend of The Sundays meeting with a poppier Primitives. Although everything is much busier, the sense of melody remains just as strong, allowing Kat’s voice to flow across the music with ease, and in terms of hooky choruses, this is an album highlight.
‘Lately’, meanwhile, opens with a huge guitar strum and ringing tone that immediately advertises Carl’s obviously retro indie interests, but from there, the number branches out into even more of a retro sounding melody once the vocals arrive. Adopting a flowing tone and a great harmony, this performance serves up a sound that conveys a mood that’s wonderfully dreamy and a melody that’s almost summery. It’s as if the Boo Radleys have hit upon an old Everly Brothers number and brought it fourth into the mid 90s to fill out one of the greatest b-sides ever. The blend of the Manns’ vocals on the quiet verse are superb. Although Kat’s lighter registers, naturally, appear to take centre stage, the track has been mixed in such a way that Carl’s very natural sense of melody also plays a vital role, and when the band stretch out into a louder chorus, he really comes into his own on more of an indie-centric sound. Throw in an unfussy yet perfectly pitched lead guitar break and a feeling that, by the time it makes its last appearance, the chorus somehow sounds even bigger, and this sounds like it will become a fan favourite in time.
The title cut makes great use of a throbbing bass line and warbling guitar sounds, which on the surface feels a little darker, musically speaking. A hard edged, almost militaristic drum line accentuates a tougher edge, and a huge Smiths-like jangle offers a closer link with something from The Shop Window. Nevertheless, it never feels out of place here, since Kat’s lighter tones bring more Sundays-esque dreaminess to the surface. In some ways, the tonal shift makes it another strong contender to click with first time listeners, and after a few plays, this becomes one of the album’s catchier numbers, while those looking to discover other great indie-centric fare will likely love‘Crushing Silence’ with its sizeable riffs, punchier bass sound and almost shoegaze-like layers of swirling guitar. As with a lot of the Shapes’ material, genuine originality isn’t a priority here, but in terms of playing and the ability to share a great melody, it’s another winner.
Elsewhere, ‘Be OK’ introduces stabbed piano lines to create something that sounds quite different to the usual SLP sound, but a slightly filtered Kat sounds very comfortable joining a really sparse arrangement. Even when the acoustic guitar takes centre stage, this has a homespun quality that really allows for more of an intimate feel, and adding a little more variety to the album ‘First Version of You’ injects more of an element of fun, due to an increased tempo without sacrificing a prominent jangle. It’s almost as if the musicians have taken a step back into a world of bands like The Mighty Lemon Drops, which coupled with great male/female harmonies, results in something that genuinely sparkles. Despite these tracks being in contrast with each other, both offer something that most Shapes Like People fans will love from the off, which really makes a statement about this album’s overall quality.
In terms of reeling in new listeners, Shapes Like People bring out the big guns – and a relative safety net – with a brilliantly chosen cover tune. A gender reversed cover of R.E.M.’s ‘Superman’ (‘Supergirl’) plays more like a statement of intent than the original. Something that was previously a song with a slightly egotistical stance, now sounds like a rallying cry for unity and strength, and its simple, jangling arrangement – replayed here, virtually unchanged, save for a much brighter guitar sound – suits the Manns and friends perfectly.
There’s very little filler to be found within this album’s twelve tracks. When the opener happens to be the weak link and the equivalent of side one, in the main, appears to build in terms of quality, you’ve got a record that genuinely rewards repeat listens. The overall sound isn’t necessarily contemporary for the time of release, but the songs are mostly great, and when Shapes Like People hit the mark – which is easily more often than not – ‘Under The Rainbow’ shares something rather lovely; nostalgic without feeling lazy. This is genuinely the work of musicians who clearly love what they do, and a highly recommended listen.
April 2026
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