Volume III: Two Animals EP

You need to go listen to the new EP from Violents. Right now. This side project from singer-songwriter Jeremy Larson has produced three EPs in less than a year—each featuring a different guest chanteuse—and Volume III: Two Animals is the best of an already impressive lot. A lush, synth-and-beat-driven affair, Two Animals is characterized by a supremely seductive and expertly chill sensibility that is undeniable. Opener “Five Senses” is damn near the most hypnotic song I've ever heard, with its ambient synths, and the bass steadily—and cleverly—mimicking a heartbeat throughout, and intriguing lyrics (“I'd been away three years/None of them worth keeping/All of my five senses were/Either numb or fading”). And then there's the breathy vocals of Olga Yagolnikov (of Portland's Kye Kye), which takes tracks like “Five Senses” and the moody, sexy, synth-plus-strings-plus-dance-beat title track, to goose bump-inducing heights. And on the haunting piano-driven “Starboard,” the combination of Yagolnikov's effortless vocals and Larson's masterful production—slightly warped beats and sweeping strings—the results are magical. If you like your music down-tempo and introspective, then you've probably already clicked over to www.violentsmusic.com to check out this fine EP.