The Fat Angel Sings

With no touring this year, and possibly next, we decided to take a deep dive into our archives and put together the first volume of our much discussed archival series, “Reflections”. Featuring rare and unreleased recordings from 2009 – 2013, Including a ghost town desert jam off the side of the highway, our first live performance in Big Sur, the first recorded version of Bend Beyond and some shelved diamonds in the rough that were finished up during quarantine. Our hope is that it plays like a “lost record” from an extremely strange and fruitful period in Woods history.

With no touring in 2020, and possibly this year, Woods decided to take a deep dive into their archives and put together the first volume of their much discussed archival series, “Reflections”. 

Track notes:

1. Bumble Bee Crown King – Recorded to cassette tape just off the highway in Arizona, on tour in 2009 after we passed a sign that read “Bumble Bee Crown King.” As a bunch of native New Yorkers, we were surprised to find nothing but endless desert when we pulled off of i17. Unaware of Bumblebee’s ghost town history we set up drums and a battery powered amp and began to bang away. Driving in the desert for so long can have a crazy affect on you. It’s both inspiring and anxiety producing. This session was our way of exercising the demons and getting that crazy energy out. Overdubs added in August of 2020 when it was finally mixed.

2. Midnight Moment – Recorded April 16th, 2013 at Buttermilk Falls in Warwick, NY during the writing of With Light and With Love. Bass and piano added during quarantine 2020.

3. Be Kind My Love – Recorded April 11th, 2013 at Buttermilk Falls in Warwick, NY during the writing of With Light and With Love. We spent a good amount of time working on a version in the studio, but we couldn’t recapture the magic of the demo. It was our first time in a proper recording studio and a couple of good songs got shelved because we didn’t know how to translate that feeling from our home recordings into the studio yet. Bass, wurlitzer and organ added during quarantine 2020 when it was finally finished and mixed.

4. Skull – Recorded at Buttermilk Falls, Warwick NY. with additional recording & mixing at Rear House June, 2011. This has, what might be the best drum take ever featured on a Woods recording. Is it just one long fill?!  Remixed August, 2020.  Originally appeared on a split 7″ with Kurt Vile for our 2011 tour together.

5. Party In The Pines – Recorded live August 29th, 2009 in Big Sur, CA during Mexican Summer’s Party In The Pines Festival. Though we were mostly playing for Redwood trees the title stuck and felt inappropriate to change. I remember that, being one of the only non Mexican Summer bands on the bill, we had to play first. It was probably around noon and there were just a few people in lawn chairs watching. It was Jeremy’s idea to cut a few songs and open with an improv just to stretch out and set the mood. This was our first time playing in Big Sur at the Henry MIller Library and was the impetus for our future Woodsist Festivals. A day that forever changed our lives.

6. Space and Time – Recorded February 7th, 2012 at Buttermilk Falls in Warwick, NY. Bass added during quarantine 2020 when it was finally finished and mixed.

7. Ballad Of Jim Jones – Written by The Brian Jonestown Massacre. Recorded August 2, 2010 at Buttermilk Falls in Warwick, NY after watching a Jonestown documentary. Bass and Organs added in 2020.

8. Bend Beyond (First Version) – Recorded March 1st, 2011 at Buttermilk Falls in Warwick, NY. This was our first attempt at recording it and has a more laid back approach with acoustic guitar and hand percussion. After working on it, we started playing it live and over the course of a year of touring, it had turned into a loud, duelling electric guitar, epic set closer. When we revisited this version of it, we realized we had to honour what the song had turned into live. Which was a big turning point for us, turning from a recording project that then does live interpretations of these weird home recordings to a band that actually tested out songs on tour before committing to a final version.

Jeremy Earl – vocals, guitars, drums, percussion, Mellotron
Jarvis Taveniere – bass, guitar, organ
G Lucas Crane – percussion (track 1), tapes/ percussion (track 5)
Kevin Morby – percussion (track 1), Bass (track 5)
Kyle Forester – piano (track 2), organ (track 7)

Recorded by Jeremy Earl and Jarvis Taveniere.

A heavy dose of California chill beaming out from New Hampshire, John Andrews and his “band” The Yawns return with “Cook Book”, their follow-up to 2017’s Bad Posture, and an airy collection of laid-back country rock, gentle AM ballads, and breezy cantina instrumentals with more than a dose of Guaraldi-imbued jazz. Andrews is a communal artist: drumming in Quilt, playing keys in Woods, and generally lending a hand in projects such as Hand Habits, Cutworms, Widowspeak, and Kevin Morby.

His imaginary band “The Yawns” are back! Third time’s a charm. In hockey terms, they call it a “hat trick” and you know who’s always wearing a ratty old hat? John Andrews. Three years in the making and we have “Cook Book”, the third, and most colourful record from your favourite craftsman. Unknowing folks usually assume he lives in New York City or Los Angeles but confer with John for 5 minutes and if he’s in the right mood he’ll talk your ear off about the granite state & the old, seedy colonial barn where he’s tracked his records with his weird and wonderful friends

After a few more years of traveling here are about 9 or 10 new tracks, but who’s really counting? The lyrics are simple and endearing,  inspired by mid century love songs. “New California Blue” offers some of the album’s most elegant and freewheeling piano playing. As such, his sound emits a close-knit, homespun warmth, not unlike the familiar coziness that the album’s title suggests. 

In album stand out, “River of Doubt”, he sings “If I’m swimming in that river of doubt, won’t you pull me out?” It’s a similar yearn we’ve heard from groups of yesterday like The Shangri Las & The Mama’s Papas,  but it’s a distant, more contemporary interpretation. Johnny’s vocals are his own instrument. His tenor is mellow yet greatly confident. He doesn’t always sing though; instrumental track  “Song for the Gonz” provides a score to 90’s street skateboarder  Mark Gonzalez with a timeless, cartoon-like melody.  “Try” could be cut from the same cloth as Carol King’s piano demos. 

Released May 14th, 2021

Melbourne, Australia psych rock band The King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, what I love more than anything is the recent semi-trend in psych rock to use droning, excessive, energetic, distorted, wild, extreme, face-melting extended guitar work. Thats exactly what you get on this further live adventure from King Gizz.

The band’s latest album ‘L.W.’ was released in February, a companion to previous album ‘K.G.’, which dropped in November of last year.

Both heavily utilise microtonal tunings, a theme the band introduced with their 2017 album ‘Flying Microtonal Banana’.

Here we go again! We have 2 editions available. 100 in both our UK and EU shops. Both editions are limited editions of 250. We will be not press anymore for the time being so act fast! Make sure to read the release date and pre order details above before ordering.

Earlier this month, the band announced their melodic and psychedelic new album ‘Butterfly 3000’ would arrive on June 11th.

released May 29th, 2021

Live at The Enmore Theatre, Sydney, Australia, April 22nd 2021

Mixed by Stu Mackenzie

The Band:

Ambrose Kenny-Smith: Harmonica, Keys, Vocals, Percussion, Guitar
Cook Craig: Guitar, Keys
Joey Walker: Guitar, Vocals
Lucas Harwood: Bass
Michael Cavanagh: Drums
Stu Mackenzie: Guitar, Vocals

We shouldn’t use the term lockdown album too often, but Damien Jurado’s “The Monster Who Hated Pennsylvania” is one and it’s a very nice

Damien Jurado came out of nowhere more than twenty years ago and then delivered one beautiful album after another. That’s what the American musician has continued to do, with his music going in all directions. After some great albums with producer Richard Swift, Damien Jurado has been reliant on himself in recent years, which now produces a pretty understated album, although a surprising turn is never far away. The understated sound here and there reminds me of the American musician’s early albums and I like that. The songs are strong, the instrumentation is vocal and the voice of Damien Jurado is very beautiful. Top album. Yet another one from the Seattle musician.

The Monster Who Hated Pennsylvania is Damien Jurado’s first release on his own label, Maraqopa Records. The album contains ten intense stories of people determined not to be broken by dire circumstances. The self-produced album is sonically among Damien Jurado’s most exposed, homespun ambiance and inspired by the dry sound of records like Lou Reed’s The Bells and Paul McCartney’s Ram. Jurado creates his own Twilight Zone, “a middle ground between light and shadow”, a dimension of imagination, of half-remembered dreams and people reaching out to cross into that liminal space between heartbreak and wholeness. Jurado knows the territory well and knows the secret words to whisper at the right time. “All is not lost/Even if you’re without a direction.” “Just stick around till the light pushes into the darkness,” Damien promises – or admits – Press your eye to the speaker, tune your ear to the horizon.

Released May 14th, 2021

Written, performed and produced by Damien Jurado
Additional instruments: Josh Gordon

What comes from afar is really not always better, but the beautiful album release “The Licking Of A Tangerine” by the New Zealand-based Jazmine Mary deserves to be cherished. The newsletter of the New Zealand Flying Out Records welcomed The Licking Of A Tangerine a few weeks ago with superlatives and that is not an exaggeration. The Licking Of A Tangerine is a special album musically, but vocally the originally Australian Jazmine Mary goes a step further.

The musician, who now operates from New Zealand, always opts for a slightly different angle and performs her songs not only in a quirky way, but also full of feeling and urgency. It’s an album that keeps getting you wrong, but it’s also mercilessly intruding. Every week I look forward to the newsletter of the New Zealand Flying Out Records, in which pearls from Australia and New Zealand regularly appear, which do not just reach our side of the world.

It started seven years ago with the debut of the then completely unknown Aldous Harding, but also the albums of Marlin’s Dreaming, Mel Parsons, Alae, Tiny Ruins, Jenny Mitchell and Reb Fountain I probably wouldn’t have discovered without Flying Out Records.

A few weeks ago, Jazmine Mary’s “The Licking Of A Tangerine” popped up this is also an album that deserves all the attention on this side of the world, but unfortunately does not get this attention for the time being.

Jazmine Mary is the alter ego of Jazmine Rose Phillips, who grew up in Gippsland, Australia, On her bandcamp page, the Musician based in New Zealand describes her music as a dreamfolk, but she also describes her music as “haunting” and that is certainly her album. The sound on her album consists basically of understated acoustic guitar lines, subtle drums and often some atmospheric synths or piano sounds, but the album is further coloured with saxophones and strings.

Especially when the saxophones claim a prominent role, her music sounds jazzy, but Jazmine Mary is also not averse to rock and folk. In her songs, she doesn’t choose the easiest way for a moment. The song structures are often complex on The Licking Of A Tangerine, while in many cases the instrumentation is striking and multicoloured, but also somewhat minimalistic. Visceral and haunting. Her surreal rose-tinted sounds will allow you to be transported somewhere bold and watery

Jazmine Mary fills the void in instrumentation with her voice, which sounds as unconventional here and there as the music. The vocals on The Licking Of A Tangerine are beautiful, but above all powerful and urgent. Here and there it reminds me vocally of a young PJ Harvey, but musically Jazmine Mary emphatically chooses her own path.
The sounds rich and beautiful, but sounds just as easily rough and elemental.
Especially when listening with the headphones, you can hear how beautifully the different instruments in the sound of Jazmine Mary merge and how the special vocals always take the album to the next level.
In Europe it remains quiet around this fascinating album for the time being, but The Licking Of A Tangerine by Jazmine Mary deserves the attention here too, if only because the album only becomes more beautiful and impressive when listened to repeatedly.

Drums – Courtney Rodgers
Keys and Baritone Saxophone – Peter Ruddell
Strings – Dave Kahn
Alto saxophone – Aaron Lovich
Music written and performed by Jazmine Rose Phillips

Released February 14th, 2021

Manchester-based singer-songwriter, Francis Lung is sharing his new single,“The Let Down” which comes as the latest installment from his forthcoming second album, “Miracle”, set for release via Memphis Industries on June 18th, 2021. The new track comes with a video self-directed by Lung and follows in the wake of previous singles that have found support at the BBC 6 Music Playlist, The Guardian The Times, NPR, FLOOD, Brooklyn Vegan, DIY, The Line of Best Fit and more. The new album was produced by Francis in collaboration with Brendan Williams (Dutch Uncles, Matthew Halsall, Kiran Leonard) and Robin Koob (who co-arranged and performed strings), recorded at the idyllic Giant Wafer Studios in rural Wales in early 2020.

Miracle represents a period of introspection for Francis. Reflecting on struggles with mental health, substance (ab)use, and relationships, the record finds him facing his demons head-on, a cathartic process that largely contributed to his decision to give up alcohol. Despite its serious subject matter, Miracle, is far from austere in sound, marrying the cinematic, dreamlike quality of Francis’s earlier music, both solo and as a member of WU LYF, with the pared-back charm of great singer-songwriters like Judee Sill, Jeff Tweedy, and Elliott Smith (of whom Francis is a noted fan; he co-organised an Elliott Smith online tribute concert in June 2020, a fundraiser for LGBTQ+ charities which featured Smith covers by Marika Hackman, Blaenavon, Marissa Nadler, and others). 

“The Let Down” is positioned as the final track on the forthcoming album; it’s a syrupy, groove-driven addition that is introduced with a dancing piano section before expanding into chopping guitars and emphatic percussion. To an extent, it acts as a celebration and underscoring of what Francis Lung attempts to resolve on Miracle, an album layered with catharsis and Lung’s realisation surrounding his aforementioned problems with alcohol and mental health.

Speaking about the new single, Francis Lung says: “The Let Down’ was written on the piano, originally with a much more conventional vocal melody. I started half-speaking/half-singing the vocal instead and suddenly different words came, words that sounded a bit like my conscience speaking to me – “If you don’t wanna be here no more, then you don’t have to be here no more.” At the time it was just another song, but after the album was finished and I was asking friends for help with track listing, my good buddy Jolan Lewis (The Foetals, Aldous RH) said “The Let Down” HAD to be the final song. Listening in context it was clear he was right, Miracle deals with so much personal stuff throughout and “The Let Down” just seemed to provide a conclusion, like your conscience saying ‘Ok you’ve dealt with all these emotions, now what are you gonna do? Are you where you want to be? Are you waiting patiently? Stop waiting.”

The accompanying video, which features Lung and his co-producer, Brendan Williams, comes inspired by the Classic Albums series which features rock icons like Steely Dan and Fleetwood Mac; it imagines Lung and Williams as 80-year-old men looking back on “The Let Down” with a tongue-firmly-in-cheek view that it was featured on a similar ‘rockumentary’ style TV show. “I actually asked Classic Albums for permission to use the opening titles and theme song,” explains Francis, “but it would’ve cost more than the combined budget for all three music videos for the campaign, so the wonderful Jolan Lewis composed and recorded an original theme song in under an hour (he also plays the alternate guitar solo in the video). I created the ‘Historic Singles’ logo and corresponding opening titles from stock footage and I guess it’s just a waiting game to see if we get sued.“

The keys commence and instantly add this engaging thread to the release, bringing this bold and upbeat bounce to the creation whilst the low-end notes add this brooding attachment. The upbeat inflictions capture this bright infliction and allude to a more poppier trait before Lung’s presence soon dominates and controls the release. Lung’s delicate and dreamy vocal notes enter the ambiance and mesmerize. The lyrics bring this realistic and raw edge to a release that flirts between being fragile and soft to soulful and a gleaming, proud beat and structure. The abrupt melody that surges throughout flawlessly angles the intensity to the forefront of the crushing arrangement. This soulful and charming piece offers an immersive vision and pulls through honest vibes found in the lyrics and delicately relayed with the tender vocal harmonies.

With each release Francis Lung shares we see this remarkable beauty to their vision, which quite frankly only Francis Lung can create and capture. Always providing music that has the ability to compel the audience at all times. The film combined with the lyrics ultimately allow this comical attribute to emit, there is a heavy passage that soars with this ensemble but it’s delivered with such a light intensity that Lung fearlessly allows this real humble character to be captured.

Miracle marks the first full-length release from Francis Lung since his critically acclaimed 2019 debut, A Dream Is U which found positive reviews from Uncut, MOJO, The Times, Paste Magazine, The Line of Best Fit, and more. Prior to that, Lung played as part of the Manchester group, WU LYF, a project which found a wealth of buzz in the early stages of the last decade, attaining Pitchfork’s Best New Music award for Go Tell Fire To The Mountain which was also named in their Top 100 albums of the 2010s. Miracle emerges as a much more focused and deeply personal record for Lung, it’s cohesive and generous in what it aims to give, allowing for something which is as vital as it is vulnerable. “I don’t want to be defined by my anxiety, my depression or any history of substance abuse,” Francis says, “but I do want to reach out to other people who have had similar experiences, especially if it’s in a way that helps them feel a little better. To me, this music is celebrating healing as much as it focuses on the darker sides of the human psyche.”

Miracle is available to pre-order as a very special hand-numbered Dinked edition on mint green vinyl with an alternate mirror board sleeve, “Miracle” patch, and flexi disc including exclusive non-album track “Internet”. Francis Lung will support the new album with dates at The Victoria, London on July 1st and Deaf Institute, Manchester on July 2nd.

Miracle Releases June 18th, 2021

Just half way through 2021 and already Bandicoot has dropped two of the most ferocious singles of the year, now the band are back to share their upcoming single “Worried Blues”, yet again another defining single from this promising outfit. Of the last two tracks the band has shared , One back in February then in April, we screamed from the rooftops that 2021 was the year of Bandicoot, well they’ve certainly owned that statement. The Welsh 4 piece recently joined the impressive Libertino family, that amalgamation alone showcases the talent that Bandicoot conveys. Libertino Records have this remarkable knack for introducing so many talented outfits and their must-hear records.

For Bandicoot “Worried Blues” inhabits a world of paranoia, born from a fear of lost love. It carries you down labyrinthine streets like a nightmarish memory, with a contagious strutting rhythm which never lets you stop moving along with it.” 

Never missing a beat or taking time to catch their breath Bandicoot are back with this impressive single.

For 3 minutes 42 seconds, Bandicoot elevates their audience into the center of their complex creation, filled with rhythmic passages and this overwhelming soundscape of giant proportions packed with abrasive shuffles, dynamic tones, and this daring attitude. “Worried Blues” starts with these dramatic piano keys accompanying the demanding vocal notes that join the ambiance immediately, the minimalist essence soon diminishes when the most ferocious and ardent drum beat and ecstatic shuffles join the exploration. Layer upon layer this mighty landscape welcomes the audience to appreciate the magnitude of the atmosphere, the intensity ramps up with the additional aggressive guitar tone and assertive riff. As the explosive structure develops we find ourselves captivated by the theatrical vocal flourishes of charismatic frontman Underdown, who ensures the audience is truly committed to this immersive arrangement.

The breakdown and instrumentation focus at 2 minutes 1 second will hypnotize you, your attention fixated on the soaring sounds and the mighty tones, the surging instrument addition seemingly employs this bold avant-garde technique to bring a contemporary feel to a sound that can also capture that of an 80s power hit. Bandicoot seriously covers such ample ground within their work. This dynamic and crushing transition showcases this bright stop-start and stellar crescendo. The vocal notes, lyrics, and powerful energy of the instrumentation all encapsulate this true long-lasting credible hit. The continuing appeal of adding in multiple elements, tones, and a flourish of versatile wind instrumentation all add this inspirational character into the ensemble. Throughout, it’s clear that Bandicoot brings this cool vibe to their rock tendencies, “Worried Blues” showcases the band’s unique combination of sonic chaotic complexity and melodic moments.

Girl Ray today share their new single, “Give Me Your Love”, a 7 minute+ electronic odyssey recorded, produced and mixed by Joe Goddard and Al Doyle from Hot Chip, at Relax and Enjoy, London. The track, out now via Moshi Moshi Records, is the first new music from the London three-piece, comprising Poppy Hankin, Iris McConnell and Sophie Moss, since the release of their critically acclaimed second album, “Girl”, in 2019. The accompanying video was directed by long term artistic collaborator Alex Cantouris. 

Poppy said the following about the track, “We worked on this song with Al Doyle and Joe Goddard from Hot Chip in their studio off Brick Lane in London. We had one day left with them, so thought we’d unearth an old demo of a slightly house-leaning song I’d been working on a few months before. It had a really loose structure but the feel of the chords was good so we decided to try fleshing it out. It was a really long day filled with a lot of playing around with the mountains of synths that fill their studio. Sections became longer… steel drums were added (along with some wonky backing vocals) and eventually it started taking shape. With all the awfulness of 2020 in our heads – it was important to us that it sounded optimistic and hopeful; a song for future summers where people can dance and enjoy music together once again.”

About the video, Sophie and Iris added: “We teamed up with our good friend and amazing director Alex Cantouris for another intricate and somewhat ambiguous love spectacle. Though this time we thought that 8 minutes of us acting would probably be unwatchable, so decided to get some professionals involved to deal with the main plot. What started off as a story about a woman having fun at a party, somehow soon turned into a romantic take on Midsommar, without the death and magic mushrooms. A queer Midsommar Night’s Dream if you will. We had the best time making it, and discovered a new found love for the Kent countryside (even though one of the shoot days was literally the windiest day of the year).”

Give Me Your Love pulls the audience into a world that emerges with it’s bright textures and crisp angular tone, a piercing tone that intensifies as the composition digresses further into its innovative journey. This complex track continues to build and build throughout its journey, providing this immersive rhythmic creation. Deep electronic textures exude this powerful hypnotic charm bouncing from the formidable structure.

Meanwhile, the dreamy vocal notes touch on some real emotions and raw affections within the intimate, reflective lyrics. The abundance of percussive elements against the honest lyrical values continues to twist and turn throughout and provides this bold contrast to the plentiful landscape. Intimacy resonates within the vibrant and moving atmosphere. This is ruly a pulsating number beaming with sweet melodies and this enthralling jolt of energy.

Girl Ray have just dropped one of their biggest, broadest and boldest tracks of their career “Give Me Your Love” .

Half Waif, the project of Hudson Valley, NY-based artist Nandi Rose, shares “Sodium & Cigarettes,” the hopeful and haunting new single from her anticipated upcoming album ‘Mythopoetics’,out July 9th on ANTI-Records.
 
“Sodium & Cigarettes’ follows the theme of many of the tracks on “Mythopoetics” and deals with the recognition that no one is going to magically save us or pull us out of our misery. The chorus ‘okay, give it another day’ is something I say to myself when I’ve had a really awful day and everything feels like a wash. It’s a deep breath and a stab at courage I can face tomorrow, and who knows what possibilities for joy and growth that will bring,” says Rose. “While working on the album during the Democratic Primary in early 2020, the song took on new meaning for me in light of political conversations. “I believe in something more than what’s in front of me” became a commentary on people saying, ‘well, this system is what we’ve got and you can’t ask for more.’ I firmly believe that we have to fight for the world we imagine, that everything is possible. So this song is really a quiet encouragement for me, a way to tell myself to stop running, to face what’s coming with clarity and vision and courage, to know there’s another tomorrow.“

Half Waif twists this tentative and intimate affection within their soaring vocal harmonies and their raw lyrics. Half Waif’s triumphant vocal notes collide with the traditional keys forming a structure within. Allowing another avenue of emotion to seep into this immersive creation. The enveloping harmonies that surround the ambiance will send chills, Half Waif has this flawless ability to stop their audience in their tracks with their standout arrangements. The power of this artist carefully breaks out at key parts of this consuming creation. When the release fades out, we sit with the silence and think about the beautiful body of work that just hypnotized us and took us away from reality. Embrace the fragility of “Sodium & Cigarettes” and from there you grasp the delicacy.

Last month, Half Waif announced her anticipated new album ‘Mythopoetics’, with a video for lead single “Swimmer” following tracks “Orange Blossoms” Party’s Over” and “Take Away The Ache” all of which were released earlier this year. 

For Nandi Rose, writing a song is an act of transformation. As Half Waif, Rose pieces together the patchworks of our darkest and most vulnerable moments with a golden thread, crafting a majestic evocation of the human experience that permeates with a graceful strength. On new album ‘Mythopoetics’, she breaks the familial patterns handed down to her, transforming this source of pain into something bearable, beautiful and celebratory. It is an essential reminder that we have the power to shape the stories we tell and the myths we make of our lives.

‘Mythopoetics’ is an album about processing past traumas in the quest for a new, sun dappled pathway, and the transformation that takes place as we take each tentative step. The artwork, shot by Ali Cherkis, sees Rose screaming in bright colours on the front, and naked, with a stoic expression on the back, representing the spectrum of emotions explored throughout each track. Change, evolution and joy take real courage, and it’s in the catharsis of telling your story that the calm, confident aftermath can finally reach the surface. Here, Half Waif is shunning the shadowed mass of generational trauma and the patterns passed down to her. Instead, she plants a seed, urging the orange blossom to sprout through the cracks in the concrete.

How many bands out there only write good songs? There can’t be many. Back when they were still a Gainesville band, UV-TV cranked out two insanely solid albums of ultra-catchy DIY jams. The band never fit into any particular mold; they were pop-punk and garage rock and twee all at once, and their sound fit the sonic blueprint of the ’90s DIY underground more than the present-day one. Maybe that’s why they’ve persistently flown under the radar despite insane levels of consistency. For their third album, UV-TV have relocated from Gainesville to Queens. They’ve lost a couple of band members and brought in a new drummer. They’ve changed their sound, going for something slower and sleeker than the fired-up attack of their early records. And they still refuse to write any songs that are anything less than good.

On their new self-produced LP Always Something, UV-TV lean into the sticky, tuneful jangle of some of the best bands from the late-’80s and early-’90s UK indie scene. In their woozy layers of guitar and their sticky hooks, I hear echoes of the Pastels or the Primitives or the House Of Love. There’s some of the stuff I used to hear on late-night DC alt-rock radio in there, too, like Velocity Girl or Tuscadero. UV-TV presumably know those references, and they’ve got a clear affection for bands from that era; the last thing that they put out before starting up the Always Something album rollout was Jesus And Mary Chain Cover. But all those bands were making albums out of their record collections, too, so maybe UV-TV are simply tapping into some eternal out-of-time sense of indie-pop wistfulness a feeling that’s existed in music for longer than indie-pop itself.

Singer and bassist Rose Vastola has one of those effortlessly cool voices, a breezy deadpan that’s still capable of conveying great longing or exhilaration when the moment calls for it. She can sound elegantly bored, and she can also make the state of elegant boredom sound fun, a rare gift. Guitarist Ian Bernacett surrounds that voice with riffs that sparkle and soar. It would probably be overstating things to say that his waves of sound evoke Johnny Marr, but that’s who I think of when I focus on them. Just as important, UV-TV songs always have a beat. They shimmy. The songs have hooks, and they have a vibe, too a buzzy giddiness that keeps up even when the band slows down.

On past records, UV-TV have led with pop-punk bangers that eventually give way to dream-pop lullabies. That structure is still in place on Always Something, but the two sides of the band’s sound are a little more integrated with one another. The faster songs on Always Something sounds more smooth and contemplative and melodically rich, while the slower ones sound more locked-in. Everything hangs together.

Always Something isn’t going to change your life. The stakes here aren’t that high. It’s a short album, over in less than half an hour. None of the lyrics have grabbed me by the collar and shaken me around yet. Some of the songs blur into one another a bit, though I maintain that “Back To Nowhere” would be a straight-up hit in a more just world. The pleasures here are familiar, comforting. Rather than challenging you, UV-TV sound like they’re trying to make a bunch of songs that will sound amazing on a sunny day when you’ve got your car windows down. That’s a noble goal, and they’ve succeeded brilliantly. There are nine songs on Always Something. None of them are bad. All of them are good. The streak continues.

“Always Something” is out 5/28 on Paper Cup Music.