Still Corners released their sophomore album, Strange Pleasures, on May 7th, and to celebrate this joyous occasion, today we turn our attention to “Berlin Lovers,” the first single off the London group’s indie pop album.  Still Corners impresses me with their ability to change their sound just enough to keep it fresh, while maintaining a familiarity by keeping the band’s essence intact.  Their first album, Creatures of an Hour, had a thematic haziness that was utterly calming and intoxicating.  ”Berlin Lovers,” which first hit airwaves in February, signified a bit of a sharper exploration into electronics.  Don’t get me wrong.  That dream pop aura still hovers over Strange Pleasures like a mist but every now and then a jagged little synth dagger slices through the fog.  Enjoy.

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Scoop Berlin Lovers here

Ducktails, which started out as the solo project of Matthew Mondanile of Real Estate, has slowly turned into a group effort over the course of four albums, with Mondanile incorporating friends and colleagues into the music making process.  Ducktails’ most recent album, the slightly soulful The Flower Lane, released in January of 2013, has a nostalgic feel with pop melodies that mimic the styles of 70s jazz and 80s synth.  The standout track is “Letter of Intent,” a smooth, lo-fi tune that lays down a funky clarinet solo and borrows the soft, angelic tones of Future Shuttles’ Jessica Farkas.   “Letter of Intent” proves that Mondanile should invite his friends over to play more often.  Enjoy.

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Buy “Letter of Intent” here

Side Note: Am I the only one who thinks the clarinetist is Macauley Culkin’s doppleganger?

Romanian producer Exal unites his ambiant, electronic constructs with the celestial vocals of UK’s Emily Underhill to form “Your Love,” a sedated electronic track  that emits mystery and romanticism with each synthesized blip and seductive verse.  ”Your Love” will be featured on Exal’s upcoming EP, To the Stars, set for release about one year after the 19 year old first came onto the scene with his impressive, instrumental chillwave EP, Stranger in the Lights, in March of 2012.  Underhill has also been around for about a year, with two EPs filled with downtempo, soothing indie tracks.  While each artist’s EPs confirm that they have serious skills alone, “Your Love” proves that, like the Wonder Twins, their powers are much stronger when combined.  Let’s hope this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.  Enjoy.

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Download “Your Love” for free here

Indians was created by Copenhagen’s Søren Løkke Juul with a desire to create new challenges for himself.  After forming, the band quickly signed with famed label, 4D, and released its debut album, Somewhere Else, which still sounds like a solo affair for Juul.  Somewhere Else is a deliberate, tranquil record, with Juul’s falsettos filling the corners of every song and his keyboard doing the rest of the work.  Guitars play a subtle role throughout the album and at most times, the percussions feel nonexistent.  But this minimalist approach has a purpose, resulting in a hazy synth album with hints of folk and scattered bursts of pop energy that play out like moments of discovery amidst Juul’s expansive exploration of his new creation.

Best Tracks:

“Somewhere Else”

“Lips, Lips, Lips”

When & Where:

Somewhere Else is perfect for that stage between awake and asleep, where you don’t know what the hell is going on, your body feels like it weighs a thousand pounds, and everything is moving in slow motion.  Just agree with me so I don’t feel weird.  Thanks

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Buy Somewhere Else here

It’s hard to tell whether Slow Magic is dream pop,  chillwave, or some marriage of the two.  Either way, Triangle, the 2012 debut instrumental album by Slow Magic, lives up to both labels, matching trancelike beats with gleaming synths to create relaxing, transcendental music.  While I would love to tell you more, the individual behind the music is a mystery.  According to Slow Magic, “The main reason for hiding my identity is to make music the main focus of the project. I think it is important that people notice the music first instead of a face or a location.”  Maybe he has a point, because when I listen to Triangle, all I can think about is where the music is taking me, instead of who is taking me there.

Best Tracks:

Toddler Tiger

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Feel Flows

When & Where:

When you need something more therapeutic (and a hell of a lot cheaper) than seeing a shrink.

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Buy Triangle here

My timing may be off (or maybe I’m just being mean) by bringing you “Summer Days” by The Reflections in the dead of winter, but it is quite possible that what we need most right now is a reminder that this brutal cold only lasts so long.  The Reflections are pretty new to the indie scene but have quickly grasped the concept that even breezy, ethereal pop tracks need a depth and complexity in both lyrics and production to survive beyond flavor-of-the-month status.  They seem to have done just that with “Summer Days,” the first single off their soon to be released debut album, Limerence.  ”Summer Days” is a track that at first listen embodies the lazier, euphoric summer moments but if you dig deeper, you find that Darian Zahedi contradicts the melody, singing about the isolation that results when something sweep you away and inevitably come to an end.  Enjoy.

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Download Summer Days for free here

A recent trip to Hawaii served as the inspiration for Other Worlds, the new album by Victoria Bergsman a.k.a Taken by Trees.  The influence of the tropical, calming excursion is no more evident than on Dreams, the standout track from the October 2nd release.  The guitars, clacking percussions, and Bergsman’s soothing tone seem to echo into oblivion.  So lay down or hide under your desk with a pillow, because this song is about as chill as it gets.  Enjoy.

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Check out Taken by Trees here

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Buy Dreams here

It doesn’t take long to get pulled into the allure of the synthesized R&B produced by Connecticut’s Max Heath and Boston’s Sedgie Ogilvy, the parents of indie pop group, Child Actor.  The warmth in the delicate sultry tones of rhythm and blues melts over the cold textures of the electronics, making Child Actor‘s music remarkably intimate and tangible.  Child Actor recently released their debut album, Victory, but it’s their first EP, Partner, released in February of this year, that will get you hooked on the chimerical duo.

Best Tracks:

They Don’t Know

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Want it All

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When & Where:

So smooth and soulful, play Partner when you want to rub butterscotch all over your booooody.

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Scoop Partner and their equally amazing second EP, Window, here (for a donation)

There is something about music that makes the world around you slowly crumble like avalanches of snow.  Supermelodic Pulp, the debut EP from Astronauts, Etc., the solo project of Berkeley, California’s Anthony Ferraro, is an expansive synth EP capable of consuming a stadium while maintaining the calm, delicate textures of dream pop.  Ferraro relies heavily on echoes and sweeping electronics to create an atmospheric sound as vast and dark as outer space but as intimate and safe as the world from under the covers of your bed.

Best Tracks:

Mystery Colors

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You Can Yell

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When & Where:

Remember the scene in Superman 2 when Zod’s female minion tosses an astronaut into the depths of space?  I bet he wishes he was listening to Supermelodic Pulp as he calmly drifted into some giant, fiery meteor rocketing through space.

Buy Supermelodic Pulp here

It’s been a year since indie pop duo, Bilinda Butchers, released their debut EP, Regret, Love, Guilt, Dreams and now the group finally returns with their follow-up EP, Goodbyes.  Released on August 28, 2012, Goodbyes continues the trend of amorous, sugary lyrics, cascading synths, and hazy melodies that consume its surroundings like a heavy mist.  If there is any difference with their newest EP, it’s the greater emphasis on guitars driving the melodies, giving Goodbyes a sharper edge while maintaining the romance and intimacy that is becoming the Bilinda Butchers trademark.

Best Tracks:

Teen Dream

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Crystal Tears

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When & Where:

Goodbyes makes me want to roll around in a field of daffodils.  Yeah, I said it!  Daffodils.

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Download Goodbyes for free (or for a donation) here