BRETT “Die Young” (10K Islands)




Brett is as pleasant as any 1980s soundtrack staple, a dream pop hybrid mixing shoegaze and dance music and straight up “pop” pop into a nocturnal playlist for the tragically beautiful. The production is exquisite, and Brett hints at JUNK-era M83 worship at places. The EP succeeds when it hews less to the pop side of the spectrum – e.g., “California Nights” and “Die Young” – and sounds fairly generic when the vocals are cleaned up and thrust front and center – pretty much the rest of the tape. But hey, if you’re looking for something to tide you over before the next wave of eighties-indebted nightbirds sweeps you off your feet, you’d do much worse than DIE YOUNG.

Brett
10K Islands

-- Ryan Masteller