In a cyber-scene full of hardworking and talented bands vying for our attention, Seoul-based band Nice Legs have long stood out for their sheer energy, enthusiasm and goodwill. Lauren E. Walker and Mark Lentz put out their first EP Lullaby Land back in 2014, and have since been a mainstay on the coolest compilations (such as this one by Cereal+Sounds/Z Tapes, and, uh, ours) as well as creating some of the most delightfully peculiar music as Henry Demos and Lewtrakimou.
With Lentz relocating to Japan to make video games (we told you they were cool), times are a’changing for Nice Legs, though luckily for us they teamed up with Fox Food Records to put out a double A-side last hurrah, Strange Family. First is ‘Mighty Three’, a honeyed cinematic rock song, playing like a slow-dance dream where reality is just off, each movement highlighted by a shimmer and shake. As such, the track occupies a curious space between then and now, nostalgia and immediacy combining into what could be fond memory, keen hope for the future, or some psychedelic vision of the present as seen from a sixties summer night.
“Day like today, can’t bare to see the sky.
It’s the most magical sound in the world
and these are magic times”
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‘Ashtrays’ is dreamy but in a different way, the background synths swelling and receding in peculiar patterns behind Walker’s vocals. If the previous track was a magical haze then this is a pensive fog, a weird, semi-transparent blanket that clouds the surroundings and forces you into introspection. Still, as you might expect from Nice Legs, the song is far more than some dejected lope, fizzing and popping with quirks and oddities while Walker’s vocals find the perfect pitch, coming to your ears like nostalgia captured and purified.
“My head hurts from smoking
just waiting my turn
when I just want to say
country songs make me homesick”
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Strange Family is out now via Fox Food Records (who are unfortunately out of alpine white lathe cut square vinyl) and Campers Rule Records (who’s crystal clear editions are also sold out). Oh well, grab it as a name-your-price download instead!