"ILYSB"- LANY

"And you need to know that I'm hella obsessed with your face," LANY's enigmatic vocalist tenderly croons in bouncy new single "ILYSB". Hearing that phrase delivered in such an endearing tone, I'm reminded of an ongoing "game" my friend Michael and I play. Over the last year or so, we've kept a running tab of artists who use "f***" so masterfully that it becomes a delicate word. Iron & Wine, Bon Iver, Lana Del Rey, Beyoncé, Kanye West, and Vampire Weekend have all been added to the hallowed ranks and while "hella" is far removed from the infamous four-letter word, LANY at least deserve an honorable mention for the way they use "hella." Instead of a fifth grader's favorite word, it's a paean of love; an innocent confession lacking any of the hazards "obsession" often comes with. Even the title, rendered in an acronym, is an ingenuous admission of affection. "I love you (babe) so bad" the singer repeatedly hums in the chorus, finger snaps and tidal synthesizer carefully accompanying him.

The cautious production is really what rescues "ILYSB" and LANY from dire romantic drama. When they sing "and you need to know that you keep me up all night" there's no agony dripping from the line. Right as the phrase ends, what sounds like a guitar is gently plucked and the pressure is alleviated. There's no pain or worry anywhere. The serene music would have you convinced he's up all night because it's a new love. The kind where everything done together is an important "event." A sort of love where you're sending texts that read "ILYSB" at 2AM in the morning as you go to bed. Or perhaps a simple smiley face emoticon. Considering the warmth of "ILYSB" the latter is more likely.



LANY's Acronyms single is now available on iTunes.

"Walk Away"- LANY

Listening through enigmatic LA-artist LANY's initial single it becomes easy to use the word "simplistic" as a descriptor. Musically "Walk Away"'s DNA is extremely mappable: late-80s R&B that could wind up on a Ready for the World album. A lone synthesizer continuously ripples like a wave in Japan's Ocean Dome Pool. Artificial finger snaps are metronomic in their precision. LANY's voice never soars or plummets as he confesses "I'm too good at leaving love," one of the song's few delivered lines. Even the way LANY ends the effort with a cut-off "I don't wanna be" harkens back to an 80s delivery method.

But filing "Walk Away" as 80s R&B-revivalism would dangerously reductionist. The electronic murmurs floating to the song's surface would be far too eccentric for standard 80s R&B fair. Each bleep recalls a spaceship scanning the surface of the Moon looking for signs of life. Reflecting on every alien communique, LANY's pregnant pauses in-between lines become almost skin-crawling. However, they don't have the feel of dramatism. Those abrupt stops seem to be done out of necessity rather than showmanship. And when you consider what LANY's saying, that his hidden talent is hastily letting love go, the pauses become necessary for the listener as well. And in those moments of vocal silence, you realize what LANY's constructed stands outside of time and place.



You can find LANY's debut track "Walk Away" and "Hot Lights" now through Soundcloud and download them on iTunes. Credit to Disco Naïveté for posting an early review of this track.