At first blush, Erika Spring's solo work is a bit lighter than her fare with Au Revoir Simone. There appears to be the beginnings of a dance beat, which could bode interestingly for the future. Of course, many of the same electro-chill elements remain, her voice, after all, is her voice: Breathy, girly, powerful in a whispering, vulnerable fashion. The lyrics are vague and sad, but "6 More Weeks" isn't depressing. In fact, it seems to be a promising start for Spring's solo endeavor. The song will be released on a split 7" in July, so if you want to hear more, you'll have to see her live. And you're in luck, since she's playing two gigs within the next 5 days, at Grasslands and Mercury Lounge on December 4 and 5. Listen to the track on her facebook, presented in an endless loop. - allison levin
We've always been big fans of Luke Temple, and it's good to see that, together with the Here We Go Magic crew, the man is keeping at it with increasingly beautiful records and videos. The band's new album "A Different Ship" (stream it here) will be out on May 8, and betrays at least a partial return to Luke Temple's more intimate and melodic sound from his solo repertoire - in this regard, lend a ear to "Hard to Be Close," "Alone but Moving" and "Over the Ocean". This is welcome news for fans like us who always thought that in most HWGM material Luke's noteworthy songwriting skills seemed a little sacrificed on the altar of textural experimentation. This doesn't mean that the band's signature hypnotic, impressionistic sound is lost - it's just that these two elements work together better than they did in past records, and this is what makes this album one of the NYC highlights of the year so far. Indeed, this collection also features songs more in line with the band's past releases ("Make Up your Mind", "I Believe in Action"), which follow on the steps of brainy-pop icons like Brian Eno and The Feelies, but there's definitely a balance here, also betrayed by the almost perfect alternation of melodic songs and less traditional ones.The just released video of "How Do I Know," telling the story of a rejected dancing robot that ends up revitalizing an older man's appreciation for life, seems to reflect on this brain/heart, mechanic/organic dichotomies and somehow bring them to unity. - PDG
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