After years of avoiding the latest teen sensation bands I have finally found myself hooked on a new band whose ages are allegedly 15 to 17. Does this mean I am getting in tune with youth culture?

I think not. The band in question are The Strypes, and it is more a case of a bunch of kids who are in tune with the culture of ageing farts like me. They cite their influences as being Doctor Feelgood, Eddie & the Hot Rods, the Yardbirds, Muddy Waters and other examples of blues and blues-based British pub rock, and listening to their debut album I think most people would have guessed as much – though there are other touches too. One song sounds like the Ramones covering Got My Mojo Working.

I find it hard to imagine anybody within 15 years of their ages being tempted away from One Direction.

It isn’t just that they go for a style I like, but that they are bloody good at it. Unfeasibly good for their age, though according to Wikipedia they have been playing together since 2008 (which would make them 10 or 12 when they started) so they have had some time to get it all together.

So they have the attitude and they have the sound, but they also have some slightly askew attention-catching lyrics like “I can’t be the bad guy, I ain’t no Lee Van Cleef” and “I look like a farmer but I’m a lover, you can’t judge a book by looking at the cover”.

As a debut album it is as impressive as Elastica or the Arctic Monkeys or even the Feelgoods themselves. I can’t even remember the last time I found a new band so exciting – possibly when I first heard Gogol Bordello.