Six friends from Columbus, Ohio making a hell of a noise together and clearly having the time of their lives, Global Voyeur is an intimate, warm and fun record that also somehow manages to sound expansive, ambitious and exciting, which is a rarer combination than it sounds. A wide scope Americana record as much as it is an indie punk one with saxophones, synthesisers and reverb-drenched guitars giving the music the feel of an open landscape, big skies and empty roads.

Kicking My Own Ass opens the album in two minutes and twenty seconds of messy guitars as the whole band makes an enormous noise while also sounding friendly and homely because of the paired vocals an octave apart. It’s a superb launching point, followed by Yesyesyes and Massacre which are both under two minutes and feel part of the classic warm American indie template of Pavement and Yo La Tengo. Concrete turns up the intimacy, the microphone sounding like it’s only an inch away from singer Olivia Stefanoff. Forget It and Paradox both have rolling guitar lines that are unpredictable and extremely creative without ever being too weird to follow. Never Seen My Homeland carries the Americana sound with open arms, and the album closes on a simple fingerpicked note with 2020, with an anti-folk quality to the understated intimacy. The dual vocals of Nate and Olivia are central to the enterprise, giving the whole record the feel of a group of friends who really enjoy spending time making music together. That feeling of warmth and fun elevates Global Voyeur above most records that might sit in the same category, knocking your socks off while feeling like a warm hug. Big Fat Head are a band with no pretension whatsoever, completely focused on the fun of making music with friends you trust. With warmth and rambunctiousness, Global Voyeur is loud, creative and very enjoyable.