On their sophomore album, 2018's vibrant
Goods/Gods, Austria's
Hearts Hearts make the kind of atmospheric, aurally intense indie electronic pop that is more about their creative musicality and overall vibe than any specific lyrical intent. Purportedly,
Hearts Hearts developed their sound during long hours ensconced in a monastery. The story holds up based on the band's cavernous sound on tracks like the yearning "To Have/To Be" and the sparkling, cymbal-heavy "Imagine/Many Lives." That you can't ever really tell what lead singer David Österle is saying doesn't really matter, nor does it stop you from connecting with the band's kinetic, hyper-colored songs. More often than not on
Goods/Gods, Österle's angelic, breathy croon is buried just underneath the band's flickering waves of vintage-sounding synths, beats, and electric guitars. There are also warmly attenuated horns, piano, and textural layers of bass and percussion throughout. Even when you can clearly hear Österle, as on the spare, minor-key, downtempo ballad "+/-," he sings with a soft, slack delivery that's part
Radiohead's
Thom Yorke, part
James Blake, and a little bit of
Sigur Rós'
Jónsi. Similarly, the trap-tinged goth-R&B of "I Was There/Noone Came" brings to mind a pleasing mix of
the xx and
Vampire Weekend. Yes, all of the songs on
Goods/Gods are bisected with a slash, as if they imply double meanings. While glitchy, the music thankfully never feels disconnected, and cuts like the opening "Phantom/Island" (with its driving piano riff) and the closing dance-punk-esque "Present/Tense" (with its orchestral flourishes) keep you engaged. ~ Matt Collar