With “Safe and Sound”, the LA-based band Capital Cities made a sizeable pop splash, a feat that is becoming all the more common for bands that, like Capital Cities, began in the ever-fertile realm of indie music. Just like CHVRCHES did last year, Capital Cities shows that while indie music aims to stand apart from the type of stuff that one is likely to see climb to the top of the Billboard Top 20, there’s nothing wrong with bringing in unabashed pop accessibility into the indie fold.
The success of CHVRCHES last year is a striking example of this as well; like that Scottish trio, Capital Cities have made it a point to bring electronics right into the middle of their mix. “One Minute More”, the band’s latest tune, is an EDM-heavy burst of sunny indie pop, an ideal tune to listen to as the summer of 2014 comes to its end. The pop charm of “Safe and Sound” is still present in the buoyant mood of “One Minute More”, but the quirks of the latter song hearken more to the group’s early indie days, all the while placing them right in the growing crop of indie artists that are incorporating popular electronic subgenres into the guitar-driven rock formula. Simply put, “One Minute More” is the sound of a band that knows how to put out an attention-grabbing song without sacrificing its less mainstream roots, and quite successfully, at that.
BROUGHT TO YOU BY CAPITAL CITIES