Foreign Born
On the Wing Now
Dim Mak Records
(album out August 21)

With an over-abundance of dance-driven rock and jittery post-punk, Foreign Born’s dreamy take on psychedelia is the soothing warmth able to thaw the undeniably danceable but cold austerity of electro’s robotic trance. This Los Angeles-by-way-of San Francisco quartet have a sonic sensibility that evokes the fuzzy glow of dappled sunshine and scenic desert landscapes with melodic songs that recall the jangling pop of the early Byrds, the eccentricities of Arcade Fire and vocals that could easily be mistaken for a young Ian McCulloch. On their debut effort On the Wing Now, Foreign Born relishes in breezy melodies that are quintessentially Californian and reference the Beach Boys’ knack for seemingly simple but secretly complex song structures. Layers of lush vocal harmonies, sweeping guitars and hypnotic percussion make “In the Shape” a mix of ethereal fragility and substantial earthiness, while the rocking “Into Your Dream” meshes a cacophonous stomping swagger with fierce guitar strumming for a Velvet Underground-inspired freak out. While Foreign Born aren’t breaking any new ground here, their inspired songs are reason enough to put down the dance music—if only for a brief moment—and soak up this sunshiny psychedelia. Catch Foreign Born when they play Bottom of the Hill Saturday, August 25.