As a reminder, we here at DC enjoy many disparate genres of music, and indie pop certainly gets a lot of play around these parts, especially during summer months. While it's true that headier experimental genres are often the focus of our published pieces, you would most likely hear guitar-driven, outdoor festival fodder if passing by our house on a July night. That is why Kin Leonn's IG story back in November caught our attention. At the time, we were steeped in melancholic Basinski decay, so the trebly guitar clip by a band called "Subsonic Eye" was just enough to pique our interest. Sidebar here, but while Instagram is a time-suck and just the worst in many ways, it remains a great space for new music discovery. So a couple months after that casually-posted story, we were so excited to finally hear Subsonic Eye's full album, Nature of Things.
Subsonic Eye hails from Singapore, but their sound pulls from all sorts of international influences. Twin guitar noodling on Fruitcake and pitch-bending on Unearth (the two excellent singles), recall moments found on Keep It Like a Secret, or tones by any number of Built to Spill revival acts. But Subsonic Eye moves at a peppier pace. A more accurate comparison may be with New Zealand's The Beths - hear tight harmonies on both the former's Spiral and the latter's Whatever.
Music video for lead single, Unearth.
Nature of Things is actually Subsonic Eye's third album, and the band went through a bit of a reinvention for it. They ditched a heavier sound for cleaner mixing and lyricism, and true to the album's title, the band also tossed in some nature motifs - opening with birdsong and weaving in pastoral acoustic guitar during a couple of interludes. This makes for an interesting take on indie pop, and adds dimension to the album as a whole piece. So while the music on Nature of Things falls into a well-worn genre, it does not at all blend into the background. Instead, through clever songcraft, Subsonic Eye gains our attention as well as our adoration. Nature of Things is out now, and can be streamed + purchased through this Bandcamp link. Hear a song below to sample the band's awesome sound, and check out the embedded video above, too.