Philadelphia‘s Doll Spirit Vessel are preparing to release debut album What Stays later this summer on Disposable America. Lead single ‘Train Brain Rot’ introduced the band’s “wry humour and questioning tone” as we described in a preview back in June, its “slacker-esque sound refusing to settle for easy comforts even as it invites identity crises to the door.” The balance between playful energy, cathartic emotion and overarching uncertainty made for a nuanced and sympathetic mood. Self-deprecating, at times self-defeating, but loaded with the fine details to persuade that a real human sits at its centre.
Latest single ‘Something Small’ offers a slower, richer sound, its half-pace rhythm draped over Kati Malison’s vocals as they again seek to find some respite or peace amid personal turmoil. “I won’t reach into the past / Instead I’ll let what may fall into my lap,” Malison sings, the track standing in contrast to the momentum of the previous single, as though willing to settle for a start instead of a total sea change. “It could be something small, something small / Wouldn’t have to solve it all.” The hazy calm and ever-so-slightly off-kilter beat gives the song the air of a daydream. A small wish imagined and let loose into the air of a lazy afternoon, whether for the comfort such imagining can bring or the tiny, tender hope it might just come true.
What Stays is out on the 12th August via Disposable America and you can pre-order it via the Doll Spirit Vessel Bandcamp page.
