Brooklyn-based duo Haerts have a delicately cross-pollinated sound, bringing together Fleetwood Mac's adult contemporary rock with shimmering, Berlin-esque synth pop. It's a surprisingly engaging combination and one they bring further into sharp focus on their third album, 2021's intoxicating Dream Nation. Featuring German-born singer Nini Fabi and instrumentalist Benny Gebert (who are both creative and romantic partners), Haerts wrote much of Dream Nation over a fevered month before recording in New Orleans with their touring ensemble. From there, they moved to Los Angeles to finish the album. It was in those L.A. sessions that they also collaborated with Grizzly Bear's Ed Droste, who guests on the dusky "For the Sky." As with many of the tracks on Dream Nation, that song evokes the feeling of driving at night through luminescent deserts and towering cityscapes. At the core of the band's sound is Fabi, whose bright, resonant voice shines like a bell through the duo's inky, black diamond arrangements. Cuts like "Strange Love" and the slow-burning "Comeback" are absolutely gorgeous, framing Fabi in glassy keyboards, velvet bass lines, and twangy guitars, all of which bring to mind an intriguing blend of Sade and Mazzy Star. Yet there are other stylistic surprises, including the clubby '90s acid jazz of "Days Go By" and the funky '60s organ grooves of "Shivering." Dream Nation is the kind of album you put on while driving home at night with the windows rolled down to better let the cool air and the nocturnal vibes surround you.
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