>Simian-theme band names are like all the rage in rock music. The Arctic Monkeys, the Monkeys, Gorrillaz, Simian, and even last Friday’s New Band of the Day, The Cruiser Chimps.

So here’s to today’s new band, Like A Fox, for shunning the temptation of crowbarring a monkey theme into their name. Foxes are crafty animals, all sly and sneaky, which augurs well for a rock band’s image. Like a Monkey would just conjure up images of the band scratching purple bottoms and scaring zoo-bound school parties by throwing their own excrement at them.

Unusual faeces imagery aside (though if that’s your thing, see one of last week’s bands, Coprophagia, here), Like A Fox are a lovely loping mix of Mercury Rev and Grandaddy. They’re another one of those slightly gleeful American bands – the type that seem to drift out of the USA every once in a while – and are a happy antidote to the mentalist urgency of most rock on the radio at the moment.

Frankly, if their song A Little doesn’t make you feel just a bit joyfully wistful, you may not be wholly human. Hear it on their Myspace page – and check out Heavy Soothing too- and see if time doesn’t just float by.

– – A big thanks to Andy Woods from the fabulous Smile night at the Star and Garter in Manchester for introducing me to Like a Fox- –