Are You Life

You’d be hard-pressed to find a better means to transition from Winter’s chill to Spring’s warmth than via the dreamy garage-pop of Little Scout.

Their second release – Are You Life – is subtle, but never slight. The LP floats in gorgeous soundscapes; an assortment of reverb strums and keyboard flourishes that bleeds into a mid-tempo groove which glistens effortlessly throughout.

You won’t find any discernable solo or – ‘March Over To Me’ aside – single that defines the Queensland indie quartet. Theirs is a collective, consistent attack; no one track looks to surpass that which comes before or after.

Complementing the band’s restrained pop stylings are the lovely vocals of frontwoman Melissa Tickle. Her falsetto glides seamlessly in and out of Little Scout’s dreamy textures, never threatening but always soothing.

You get the feeling she has the pipes to break out into a grandstand moment, but to do so would only serve to puncture Are You Life’s carefully-paced chill.

With such a consistent approach, picking highlights becomes a touch superfluous. Still, the interplay between a playful bassline, Tickle’s falsetto and a keyboard riff straight out of The Karate Kid soundtrack on ‘Flash In A Pan’ is worthy of gloating praise.

It also highlights their careful structuring and musicianship, particularly during the tune’s lovely call-back outro. Others – including the glorious summer whine of ‘We Used To Know’ and ‘Day’ – prove equally pleasing.

Highlights aside, it’s an outstanding effort – an LP that will last beyond Spring’s season and long into the lingering wave of Summer’s burn.

Listen to the album in full here:

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