Cornerstone by The Stamp – Single Review

Sam Millne waxes lyrical about The Stamp’s new single, Cornerstone.

When I first saw The Stamp live, I was immediately hit by their sound. 

Sitting upstairs in Jimmys, waiting patiently for a slot on the open mic, four lads, each of whom I recognised individually from various places, took to the stage and declared they were The Stamp.

The band have actually been around for a few years but coronavirus and life halted their music journey for a while. 

The Stamp are back now though with new members, and Connah Abraham retaining his place as frontman. 

While open mic nights are packed full of talent and are an essential outlet for upcoming musicians, it’s rare to be hit by such a sound as the acts usually consist of solo acoustic guitarists. 

This was a full band though, plugged in and trialling their first set of new music. 

The word I’d use to describe them is ‘rootsy’ and their style isn’t far from The La’s’ acoustic-backed lead guitar riffs, with the addition of some latin trumpet sounds.

One of the songs, Cornerstone struck me immediately and it’s the first single that the band have released. 

There’s no waiting around for Cornerstone to get going as Tom Lane shows off his impressive fast fingers on lead with an opening riff. He maintains the intricate playing throughout and the song is consistently fast-paced despite a couple of long-ish solos. 

The pre-chorus also does a perfect job of preserving the beat while the melody slows slightly before the catchy chorus lines.

I rate this song so highly that I’d go as far as to say it wouldn’t sound out of place on The La’s’ self-titled near-perfect seminal album. 

You can follow The Stamp here and listen to Cornerstone here.