Despite the complicated name of the band, this quartet delivers a simply sweet sound. Their self-titled CD resembles a fusion of Silversun Pickups and Postal Service with a lighter and dancier edge. When I put on the first track, “In Steps,” it took me exactly where I wanted to go: into a state of relaxation. The guitar is lathered across the electronic static and steady beat, which instantly melted away any stress I felt before listening. The voices and words seem to fade away, emphasizing the melody of the guitar. What I found interesting was that some tracks focused more on guitar than electronic sounds, and others seemed to be an equal blend of both. “Pause” carries on that relaxing feeling with humming voices and atmospheric guitar. The electronic sounds are so soothing that I forgot they were there. The track is quite mellow until it suddenly picks up with a strong synthetic dance beat that really caught my attention.
All the tracks on this CD are worth listening to. The tracks that stood out to me the most were “In Steps” and “Pause.” After listening to them, I remembered the guitar in the first track and the strong beats in “Pause.” Overall, this album is very relaxing and upbeat at the same time, but I wanted to hear more vocals. It was difficult to hear the words of most of the songs because the singer has a whispering voice that hums under the music. But this is also good because it allows the listener to focus on the music rather than the words. It makes the listening experience more relaxing. This band has a memorable sound and I believe their next release will be even better.
Grade: 3.5 out of 5 stars
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