Bob and Martha are not actually Bob and Martha; the actual names of the duo are Aparna Muralidharan and Dan Bonsignore. According to their press materials, they both met and starting recording music in “an explosive firework of creativity and kittens”. Upon listening to Bob and Martha’s new EP, Middle Babies, it becomes clear that description is no mere use of adorkable rhetoric. Especially on tracks like “We Leave”, which you can exclusively stream below, the band’s brand of lo-fi, charming pop more than lives up to the image of a firework of kittens. Add this up with the animal costumes the group wears on the cover of Middle Babies and you’ve got yourself one twee pop outfit with a sense of humor and childlike wonder about their music.
The duo tells PopMatters this about the song: “‘We Leave’ is a ballad about adult insecurity, feeling too old for our shoes, and trying to be a real grown up in a crazy world. It’s an exhibit of the vulnerability that’s hidden in the pulse of Middle Babies.”
The self-released Middle Babies EP is out now.
Stream and purchase Bob and Martha’s self-titled release via Bandcamp below: