New Artist: Winter Gloves

Though indie pop bands aren't exactly a rare commodity, the good ones are always worth the work it can take to discover them. Winter Gloves, the Canadian-based quartet led by Charles F, make explosive, danceable synth-rock music that qualifies them as one such group. The band's debut LP, About A Girl, has recently seen a U.S. release and caught the attention of Spin, who offered two tracks by the band, their cover of LCD Soundsystem's "Someone Great" and About A Girl's first single, "Let Me Drive." Both are worth a download.

The new album is a brief (29 minute) blast of catchy choruses, spiky guitar lines, and fuzzy keys behind Charles F's theatrical tenor vocals. Aside from the aforementioned "Let Me Drive," highlights include the urgent opener "Factories," the electro-rocker "Invisible," and the appropriately named "Party People." The band also mix things up occasionally with some slower, more pensive numbers like "Glass Paperweight" and closer "Piano 4 Hands" that round out the album and give it some needed variation, resulting in a well-balanced record with no filler and plenty of killer. For indie pop addicts, About A Girl would make an excellent addition to your collection.

If you want to hear more, you can head over to the band's MySpace page. You should also check out their amazing flip-book music video for "Let Me Drive," which you can see at my previous post.