MAXIME. - EMPTY

Maxime gets autumnal on "Empty," an understated indie banger for dancing beneath changing leaves.

MAXIME. - EMPTY

Autumn is a conflicted, complicated season. It seems to evoke images of thick cozy sweaters; cafes with fogged windows; lengthening nights, full of fire and specters in equal measure. It also brings to mind bare, skeletal trees, scratching the sky like corpse fingers; dead corn stalks rattling like bones in the chilled air.

Either of these associations overlook the fact that Autumn is also a celebration. It's a time of harvest when the spoils of the summer's labor come to fruition. It's also a party, a time to drink cider and spiced donuts. It's spooky and fun at the same time.

It's a good approximation of maxime.'s music. Take one glance at the name, "Empty," off of the Pity Party EP, no less. Don't let the dour, downbeat titles fool you though. Musically, "Empty" is all good times - smooth, jazzy basslines; funky guitars; and psychedelic, disorienting keyboards, which is all the more impressive seeing as how all of the tracks on Pity Party were recorded in Maxime's bedroom studio in Ottawa, Canada. It's good times indie rock, a la early Arctic Monkeys. The lyrics, however, are more despondent, downtrodden. This is in keeping with maxime.'s m.o., whose first EP was called crying in the club, They're clearly onto something, getting into a groove and cultivating a unique aesthetic.

maxime .is supposed to drop their debut earlier this year. We Are: The Guard are ready for it! We've got our dancing shoes polished and our handkerchiefs ready!