Personal relationships are the endgame for most people. The search to connect your innermost feelings with another person is what Elika's new album “Snuggle Bunnies” often hints at. At the core of the lyrics are emotional ties that revolve around the struggle of the human being's fight for happiness on earth, and the band's wide palette of sounds complements these lyrics. Released on Peruvian label Automatic, classic Elika resounds on the 1st single “Summer”. Shoegazer-style soundscapes are scattered throughout the album, but it's a simple plaintive side that finally emerges in the highlight song “Death and Avalanches”. Pure talent and a bare acoustic guitar set in motion resounding, deep feelings when singer Eva relies on just her voice and her metaphors. “The Darkside” musically reflects its lyrical counterparts, revealing 2 songs in one and releasing its somber verses instantly into an uplifting arpeggiated chorus. The closer “Tidal Wave” is a complete musical movement based on a simple progression, with drums that wash around each other in synch. When it all comes crashing down, you are left to roll in the emotional feedback they create: a symbiotic tie making you wonder what is there left when you've relied everything on someone else. - Simon Heggie
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
