I have an unwritten rule where I never review cover bands, but The Lounge Kittens from Southampton are on another level entirely. Since debuting early last year, they’ve been on a meteoric rise, catching the attention of many with their amusing covers that span any genre they care to delve into. And you can find the cream of the crop of their work in their Just The Tip… EP.

Not only does it prove to be a comedic compilation, but a genuine showcase of the ladies’ musical talents. Their vocal harmonies are perfectly matched, their chemistry is on top form at all times and the piano work is fantastic. As for the songs themselves, all are really well done in the group’s style of, you guessed it, lounge.

Party Hard (Andrew WK) and Duality (Slipknot) are very fun, bouncy tracks to get the festivities started, followed soon by a fine medley of Sean Paul tracks which feature the ladies delivering their best Jamaican accents. Their classic cover of Rollin (Limp Bizkit) does a brilliant job recapturing the energy of the original through their trademark twist, and their alternative take of I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing (Aerosmith) would fit very nicely as a slow number in any Broadway production.

But it doesn’t get any better than with the closing cover of Gloryhole (Steel Panther), which is already a hilarious song, but to hear the three sing about sexual diseases and genitalia in their fashionable, English timbres, it kills me every time.

This is a delightfully humorous record compiled by a trio who, as mentioned before, are legitimately talented in their own right, and they make the most of their abilities to present an original, funny take on many rock and metal classics, no matter how heavy or disgustingly explicit they may be.

From opening for Limp Bizkit on the main stage of Sonisphere, to touring the country with Steel Panther, the self-proclaimed “rock sluts in disguise” can only go up from there, and I highly recommend everyone heading to Download Festival this year to rise and shine early for their Saturday kickoff performance on the second stage; you most certainly won’t regret it.