Guitar anthems: they were all the rage during the 1970s and 1990s, but have become less prominent in the mainstream in recent years. The Arctic Monkeys, clattering hooks and epithet-coated choruses in 2006, moved away from the genre in 2018 for croonier melodies. Legacy bands Manic Street Preachers, Guns N’ Roses and My Bloody Valentine proudly carry their instruments, blasting power chords into the prying audience, every plectrum bearing an attitude and confidence. It’s becoming harder to think of a younger equivalent, so it’s a relief to find KEELEY’s Girl on the Edge of the World. Rock guitars form the central DNA of the record, for all the glory it can muster.
“Who Wants to See the World” starts with reverb playfully echoing around the speakers,…