Singled Out: Feb. 1

“Odessa”—Caribou

Dan Snaith, the creative mastermind behind Caribou, is intent on carving out new musical territory with his upcoming album Swim. First single “Odessa” is a marked departure from the sounds heard on Caribou's Polaris-winning Andorra. Where his previous album was, for the most part, composed of organic and serene atmospheres, this new track feels jittery and synthetic. Considering its dark electronic disco groove and crooning vocals, I wouldn't be surprised if Snaith was influenced by glitchy electronic duo (and fellow Canadians) Junior Boys. “Odessa” is a promising glimpse of his new material and certainly keeps expectations high for Swim's April release.—Sean MacKay

“Anna”—Taken By Trees

Despite its relatively small population, in the last few decades Sweden has established itself as one of the most successful breeding grounds for music in Europe. The current wave of Swedish exports ingrained in North American consciousness, led by Peter Bjorn and John and Lykke Li, specialize in the downbeat and the melancholy. This true as well for Victoria Bergsman, also known as Taken By Trees, who has crafted the astonishingly beautiful “Anna” with help from Animal Collective's Panda Bear. With folky guitar work (surely inspired by early '70s icon Nick Drake) and the layered vocals that have become Panda Bear's calling card, this is the perfect musical landscape for Bergsman to showcase her subdued, yet affecting voice. She'll be stopping by Toronto with fellow Swedish solo act El Perro Del Mar on February 21 at the Mod Club.—SM

“Early Warnings”—Foreign Born

As the weather gets crappier (i.e. colder), I find myself more inclined to listen to music that I would normally associate with summetime. L.A.’s Foreign Born recently released their second full-length LP through Secretly Canadian, and the track “Early Warnings” offers listeners two elements of interest: first, there’s the band’s use of African highlife guitars, which plays into my favourite sub-genre of afro-pop; and second, frontman Matt Popieluch’s bruised voice, which lends well to the band’s laidback aesthetic. Popieluch admits to Rolling Stone that the Foreign Born hadn’t always been so chill: “I used to scream a lot more and bruise my legs on tambourines,” Popieluch says. “But we were too uptight, and didn’t groove enough.”—Navi Lamba

“Let’s Go Surfing”—The Drums

The Drums are a two-piece pop group from Brooklyn with an online statement clearly explaining their musical mandate: “We only write about two feelings: one is the first day of summer when you and all of your friends are standing on the edge of a cliff watching the sun set and being overcome with all of your hopes and dreams at once. The other is when you’re walking alone in the rain and realize you will be alone forever.” Sounds like they’re going to be re-writing Beach Boy tracks, right? Wrong! Their sound is almost the exact opposite—it’s rather akin with new wave with echoes of Robert Smith in lead singer Jonathan Pierce’s voice. Still, the band maintains a fresh sound—maybe it’s all the whistling backing this track?—NL

“Facelove”—PS I Love You

PS I Love You. noun. 1. an awful movie; 2. a talented indie-rock band from Kingston, Ontario. (Thankfully, we’ll be focusing on the latter definition.) “Facelove” opens up quite simply, launching into a painfully sweet melody. Halfway through the track, the mood changes and the song begins to take on a heavier, guitar-driven sound. In a style reminiscent of Broken Social Scene, “Facelove” carefully subverts the elements of a sweet pop song, giving it more depth. The band will be playing the Silver Dollar Room on March 12 for Canadian Music Week.—NL