Indie Pop

Winter – Vancouver Sleep Clinic

18-year-old Tim Bettinson, better known by his adopted moniker as Vancouver Sleep Clinic, is an ambient artist who’s new EP, Winter resembles a cold, reclusive, winter day. Created over months of writing and recording, Winter is a chilly EP and has soaring falsettos that are greeted with synthy instrumentation, there is obvious Justin Vernon/Bon Iver influences scattered across Vancouver Sleep Clinic’s sound. However, this similarity does not takeaway from this EP’s individuality and these six beautiful tracks shows that Winter is only the beginning of this young musician’s sound.

With soaring falsettos, the vocals on this EP are stunning and throughout Winter, the vocals keep its distance while maintaining the focus of the EP on them. The lyrics on this EP evokes a feeling of winter, much like its namesake, and with his pop influences, Bettinson sings about love. Even as the EP grows in shape, with growing instrumentation and differentiating rhythms, Winter maintains sincere and vulnerable lyrics. The airiness in Bettinson’s voice gives a frosty and solemn mood to the EP. With vague narratives, allowing the listener to interpret the songs in their own way, the themes throughout Winter are clear and yet, never overpowering.

Exploring atmospheric pop, the melodies in Winter are beautiful and emotional, with expressive guitars and gentle piano. Rhythms consist of simple drum beats and glitch pads. A constant percussion section throughout Winter keeps the EP from falling into As the EP progresses tracks such as “Vapour” explodes as the song moves forward into its climax with broader instrumentation. Bettinson’s music is far from minimalistic, there is always room for evolving in his sound, especially on this EP. It is a tough move to insert an interlude, “(Aftermath),” for an up-and-coming artist, especially on a six-track album, but, on this EP, Bettinson seems to know that it will fit and hence, inserts it with beauty.

No matter if you love Bon Iver or not, there is something in Vancouver Sleep Clinic’s sound that is worth listening to.

The Colourist – The Colourist

After the release of their first EP, Lido, and garnering attention for their single, “Little Games,” the Colourist’s new self-titled album, The Colourist combines everything that the band has worked towards. This Orange County quartet consists of Adam Castilla on vocals and guitar, Maya Tuttle on drums and vocals, Kollin Johannsen on guitar, and Justin Wagner on bass and keyboard. Originally collaborating together in the band, Paper Thin Walls, Castilla and Tuttle eventually branched off together to front the Colourist together. The band most certainly have their own sound, however, on The Colourist, it seems as though they are still trying to form it.

Upbeat vocals are met with lyrics about love and heartbreak on The Colourist and the majority of the lyrics never seem to want to stray from living in the moment. But, this theme about young love and living in the now seems to be a bit too r Tuttle’s bright vocals contrasts Castilla’s timid but strong singing. The harmonies between the two vocalists are what makes the album standout as they are both catchy and lively. Tuttle’s bright vocals contrast Castilla’s timid but strong singing. The harmonies between the two vocalists are what makes the album standout because of how catchy and lively they are.

The Colourist’s usage of full-band instrumentation gives them somewhat of a more natural sound to their powerpop music. Throughout The Colourist, the guitar is animated and energetic. The entire album has a sort of 80’s feel to it with their polished guitar riffs and piano. The drums on this record are simple, with straightforward rhythms and an upbeat flow. Tuttle makes danceable dance beats even without the use of a drum machine. This easiness adds to the tone of the album, bright and carefree. The Colourist adds their own organic twist to powerpop in this debut.

The Colourist shows that on this debut, they can make light and memorable indie pop, but it seems as though in today’s music world, this is nothing out of the ordinary. Even with that in mind, there is no doubt that this debut by the Colourist is fun and, with pun intended, colorful.

Forever – Painted Palms

With energetic vocals and bright instrumentations, Painted Palms blends pop with electronics in their sound in a stunning way. The band consists of two cousins, Reese Donohue and Christopher Prudhomme and grows to five members for live performances. Their most recent release, Forever, is their first full-length album and is a positive example of what Painted Palms can do. Painted Palms has an undeniably fresh sound that is intensely layered and fun. With various layers in their songs, it is easy for elements throughout the album to be overlapped, however, this makes the album all the more fascinating as it makes you want to listen to it on repeat to catch everything.

Formed states apart, the duo began exchanging music they had created and once they released their first EP on their label, they have established themselves as musicians. The lyrics on Forever are certainly not poetic but they do have a catchy vibe to them. Prudhomme’s vocals throughout the album are carried similarly to those of James Mercer of the Shins in the sense that both have a melodic tone in their voice and show off their range but know not to get carried away with it. Vocals remain engaging and there is an appeal in Prudhomme’s voice that is both enjoyable and lively.

Melodies on Forever are charming and their deeply layered songs shows that there is more to Painted Palms’ music than a simple rhythm and riff. Although the majority of the instrumentations in the album were made on the duo’s computers, there is still the natural sounds, such as the tambourine in “Here It Comes,” that pleasantly contrasts the heavy electronic sounds. The layering in this album can be overwhelming at times, but the structures of the songs are one of a kind.

Repeated listens to Forever is a must as that is the only way to catch all the fascinating details Painted Palms have put into their music. Even though the lyrics are somewhat lacking, this dense album shows that the duo can write and produce a good album. Painted Palms will definitely begin to make a name for themselves as they continue to develop their  sound, tour, and begin to work on their second album.