cootie catcher - Shy at first (2025) Hi-Res

Do you ever wish you could conjure up all that unshackled energy you had as a kid and experience life as an adult through that wide-eyed perspective? cootie catcher are doing just that, and we should all pay attention.

On their new album Shy at first, the Toronto indie pop group process their young adulthood in a delightfully chaotic way, juxtaposing swirling acoustic guitars, frantic drums, squiggly electronics and playful vocals. The band's innocent yet bustling energy is in large part due to the communal vocal duties between Nolan Jakupovski, Anita Fowl and Sophia Chavez, with everyone taking a turn at lead; cootie catcher's bond as a group of friends with shared experiences can be felt.

On lead single "Friend of a friend," Chavez and Fowl trade off verses amidst frolicking guitars and electronic blips, both craving real connections beyond a sea of casual acquaintances. Later, on jangle-pop song "Diary," Fowl explores the opposite feeling of a situation crossing a boundary. Elsewhere, Jakupovski finds a glimmer of trustworthy light on the fluttering "Words mean less" as he nonchalantly sings, "In a web of lies, you're a goddamn miracle."

cootie catcher's charismatic brand of twee is highly infectious. "Dumb lit" flows vibrantly, channeling the warmth of early Rilo Kiley, pairing bright guitars with their sweet, childlike melodies. Jakupovski and Fowl do their best Moldy Peaches impression on "Clique clique," with call-and-response lines and finger-picked acoustic guitar.

The band also proudly claim the genre of indietronica (we haven't heard that term for a while!), and songs like "Gallery" — with its glitchy samples and squeaky, digitized beat — and "Musical chairs" — with its peculiar, hyperactive melody made up of Jakupovski's chopped-up vocals being pulled along by a crispy drumbeat courtesy of percussionist Joseph Shemoun — foot the bill.

Shy at first's lo-fi quality mixed with the wacky samples, frenetic drumming and deadpan lyrics exhibit cootie catcher's main motif: there's nothing too untamed or too dorky that can't charm your socks off. Their songs have an open, weightless feeling to them, with little tiny moments of pure pop goodness that stick with you long after the album is done.

The flavour of the day for hot new indie bands seems to be heavy shoegaze or alt-country, and cootie catcher's colourful, ramshackle sound feels refreshing because they run in the opposite direction. The band may have been shy at first, but they're clearly ready to open up in a big way.