Eight seconds into the bass/drum combo opening of “Fall Back,” Singles Going Nowhere cements its aesthetic by careening into iridescent pop territory. Five songs clocking in at 17 minutes, the debut EP from Austin fivepiece Très Oui comes across as lyrically abstract aside from “Prince of Pop,” a love song for Prefab Sprout courtesy of frontman and guitarist Nathaniel Cardaci, whose Eighties power-pop vocal affectation matches a musical effort focused on building a cohesive sonic luster. Ian Jensen’s synth-y sheen and ethereal vocals lent by Hannah Read steer Très Oui closer to dream-pop, but it’s all rooted firmly in jangly, buoyant guitars and Seth Whaland’s chugging basslines. The disc’s greatest strength lives in its unusual compositions and the group’s innate awareness of when to let things breathe, like when the denouement of slower cut “Twin Peaks” unexpectedly rears back into an astral, instrumental clamor.
This article appears in February 3 • 2017.