Dust on the Breakers

Bridging the gap between dream pop, dark Americana and orchestral indie rock, the songs on this EP manage to be eclectic without seeming artistically overburdened. "Charred Metropolis" has an air of spiritual turmoil just shy of being melodramatic, while the down-tempo "Frontiers" shimmers with the music's impressionistic dynamics. "Summer Rainstorms"...

By Tom Murphy

March 18, 2010

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Bridging the gap between dream pop, dark Americana and orchestral indie rock, the songs on this EP manage to be eclectic without seeming artistically overburdened. "Charred Metropolis" has an air of spiritual turmoil just shy of being melodramatic, while the down-tempo "Frontiers" shimmers with the music's impressionistic dynamics. "Summer Rainstorms" recalls Beach House with its gorgeously dreamy atmospheres, and the Arcade Fire with its sweeping, uplifting melodies. The closing songs, "Quiet Please," and "Quiet Please redux," with their male and female choruses and Roger Green-esque guitar drones, could be long-lost Low compositions. A fitting level of restraint is displayed throughout in the use of volume, adding gravity and mystery to the lyrics, which evoke complicated emotional situations and existential dilemmas. This is space rock with soul and refinement.

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Tom Murphy is a writer, visual artist and musician from Aurora, Colorado. He was a prolific music writer for Westword and a documenter of the Denver music scene.

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