Feelings in Bloomington, MN

The sophomore album from Oakland, California's
Brijean
, 2021's
Feelings
finds the duo further expanding their trippy, sun-dappled brand of AM pop and dance music. The record follows 2018's
Walkie Talkie
and again features the talents of singer/percussionist
Brijean Murphy
and bassist/instrumentalist
Doug Stuart
.
Murphy
, the daughter of drummer/engineer
Patrick Murphy
, has worked with artists like
U.S. Girls
,
Poolside
, and
Toro Y Moi
. Similarly,
Stuart
, a Chicago native who studied jazz at the University of Michigan, has contributed to projects with
Bells Atlas
Meernaa
Luke Temple
Jay Stone
. They bring all of their experience to bear in
, drawing inspiration from their love of '70s funk, psychedelic Latin soul, and Day-Glo '90s house music. It's a buoyant sound that brings to mind a vibrant mix of artists like
Deee-Lite
Greyboy Allstars
Stereolab
. Vocally,
has a stylishly flat resonance that evokes iconic singers like
Astrud Gilberto
and
Nico
. It's a perfect fit for the duo's vintage-inspired recordings that wouldn't sound out of place pumping from a car stereo at the beach in 1970s Rio de Janeiro. That said, with their sparkling keyboards, Latin rhythms, and supple bass grooves, tracks like "Softened Thoughts," "Daydreaming," and "Hey Boy" have a woozy, out-of-time quality that could land them in any decade between 1968 and 2021. There's also a cinematic quality to
's music, and listening to hypnotic, neon productions like "Lathered in Gold" and "Wifi Beach," you can imagine yourself walking along a beach at dusk or cruising the sunset strip in a convertible. ~ Matt Collar