QTY: QTY – Just enough invention amid the mimicry

When does an influence stray into pastiche? It's doubtful that QTY went out of their way to ape their musical idols, but even Dan Lardner would admit that his laconic drawl outdoes Lou Reed's and that his band's perky retro riffs owe a hefty debt to The Strokes.

Luckily for the New York duo, there's just enough invention amid the mimicry on their debut album to warrant repeat listens. Rodeo's Reed-Bowie-style glam is indulgent but impossibly likable; the garage rock of Dress/Undress and Word for This sounds like a more polished version of CBGB's staples, while the virtually interchangeable Sad Poetic and Notify Me are more than a little tongue in cheek in their brazen homage to 1970s protopunk.

Living Things and Salvation zip, pop and shoulder shimmy their way into the noughties, although the languid girl-boy duet New Beginnings takes the sting out of the track list just when it needs an injection of pace.

They're far too derivative to be the future of rock music, but QTY could yet prove conspicuous if they find a way to tweak their formula. facebook.com/QTYNYC