BEST NEW ELECTRONIC: SLEIGH BELLS - AND SAINTS

I’m still trying to get my hearing back from Sleigh Bell’s recent efforts from last year, Jessica Rabbit, but the Brooklyn band is apparently not one to rest on their laurels. This week, the duo released a single off their upcoming mini-LP, Kid Kruschev. YUP! Another musical release to help keep us afloat in 2017. Thank god.

But don’t go reaching for the ear plugs as per usual yet; the track is not quite what you’d expect from the boisterous noise pop group (though that’s not necessarily a bad thing). Listen to the melodic single “And Saints” below.

SLEIGH BELLS - AND SAINTS

Sleigh Bells get their acclamations from combining raw guitar and electronic firepower with Alexis Krauss’ mellifluous vocals. Krauss’ voice is very much prominent in “And Saints,” but the track feels stripped down without the band’s signature noisy elements surrounding her.

“And Saints” instead grips your attention with its pulsing, ambient background. Borrowing from the track’s title, Krauss’ voice echoes through the song like an isolated sound in an empty chapel. The melody of “And Saints” is as compelling as a hymn, at least. It is an eerily gentle track coming from such an energy-driven band, but “And Saints,” if nothing else, provides us a glimpse into a possibly new direction that the duo are experimenting with.

“And Saints” was accompanied with a mini-LP announcement, where Derek Miller (Krauss’ counterpart) announced that they would be releasing Kid Kruschev early next month, and to anticipate shorter projects like this for the future. Sleigh Bells is clearly just brimming with frenzied creativity. Stay tuned.