Earlier this week, UK lo-fi duo Oro Swimming Hour released their sophomore album Lossy, the follow up to 2017’s Penrose Winoa. Much like their debut, the album is a highly textured, fantastical trip into the inner world of nostalgia, with thoughtfully detailed, colorful tracks, that, ironically, considering their expansive nature, last no longer than three minutes each. The Bristol based duo, composed of Oliver Wilde and Nicholas Stevenson, recorded the album onto two tape machines in Wilde’s shared living room and Stevenson’s home office, resulting in a wonderfully lived-in, warm feeling, which plays into their intentions for the album as a whole:
“It’s meant to make the world appear more optimistic through ill-conceived capturings, what is essentially children’s music for adults, pop music for people who hate pop music, lo-fi for people who hate lo-fi.”
Out of the twenty-one delightfully varied tracks on Lossy, it is the stunning track “Peony” that stands out due to its arresting guitar opening; each time I hear the muffled strums, peppered with near-tangible specks of distortion, for some reason it evokes the feeling of sitting calmly in the hull of a tiny boat, looking out of the portholes as waves crash into them, peacefully and steadily. The casual, yet passionate strums carry both the airy lightness of whimsy and the heaviness of deep introspection, with light and dark crossing paths every so often in order to give the entire track a hauntingly beautiful aura that, at times, almost seems four dimensional.
Lossy is out now, and, courtesy of Deertone Records, the album will be pressed onto a limited edition (100 copy) splatter effect 12”, a classic standard black 12”, and a vivid green cassette.
P.S.: Deertone Records is run by UK based artists Helena Eve and Henry-C Sharpe, two absolutely lovely people who make music separately as Herbal Tea and Sleep Radio, respectively. I highly, highly recommended that you check out their incredible work as well, found here, and here. If you like thoughtful, genuine dream pop, you’ll love their music, guaranteed.
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photo courtesy of Deertone Records
kid with a vinyl 