Corvair

The duo behind Portland, Oregon's Corvair were already well-established by the time they launched their new band. The married couple of Heather Larimer and Brian Naubert already had collective decades of experience in indie rock, Larimer coming from years with her wonderful 1960s-tinged indie pop band Eux Autres, and Naubert contributing to a host of bands and projects in the Pacific Northwest indie scene. With Corvair, the couple explore their shared and lifelong fixation with idiosyncratic pop, crafting crisp and catchy pop songs with hidden nods to some of their favorite influences hidden just below the surface. One of the first elements of Corvair's sound to jump out is the duo's bright vocal harmonies. Larimer and Naubert's vocals melt together on many of the songs, ranging from the husky, attitude-heavy guitar rock of "Paladin" to the spacy clouds of background vocals on "Focus Puller." The creative approach to vocal arrangements is a highlight, and the quality of the singing anchors the album's frequent and wide-ranging stylistic jumps. In the space of a three-song run, Corvair get into fantastical synth rock on "Sailor Down," simmering, echo-laced dream pop ambiance on "Daily Double," and streamlined harmonic pop on album standout "Sunday Runner." Tiny production details are hidden at various depths throughout the record, from muted woodblock percussion snaps and synth countermelodies at headphones-only volume to unexpectedly metal harmonizing guitar solos louder in the mix, but still easy to miss beneath the much more prominent pop gloss. A debut this strong is no surprise coming from musicians as accomplished as Larimer and Naubert, and repeated spins of Corvair reveal more of its sonic Easter eggs and subtle references. More than connecting the dots to various influences, the main takeaway from the album is how Corvair use those subtle influences as building blocks to create a weird and captivating pop language all their own. ~ Fred Thomas