Song of the Day: Pinkshinyultrablast - Kiddy Pool Dreams

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part of our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJ’s think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on the Afternoon Show with Kevin Cole, is “Kiddy Pool Dreams” by Pinkshinyultrablast from a 2015 single on Club AC30.

Pinkshinyultrablast - Kiddy Pool Dreams (MP3)

Although there’s a great deal of influence of the melodic side of shoegaze in St. Petersburg, Russia’s Pinkshinyultrablast, elements of Krautrock and early electronic music set them apart in the current wave of glimmering guitar worshipers. Igor (bass), Lyubov (vocals), Sergey (drums), Rustam (keys), and Roman (guitar) make what they call “thunder pop”, and as far as semi-serious genre tags go, it’s pretty spot-on. There’s far more melody than noise in their potent, hazy sound, but between their pounding rhythm section and the smothering layers of gorgeous keys and guitars, it has a massive heft behind it all. The band's 2015 debut, Everything Else Matters, was a critical hit in Europe, opening the door for the band to tour outside of Russia, including a full UK leg this autumn. It's an understatement to say that "Kiddy Pool Dreams", their first recording since the release of Everything Else Matters, opens with a bang, because the entire song sounds like a euphoric cataclysm, boasting as much force as it does beauty. All throughout the song, Lyubov's voice remains the silvery cornerstone that ties the band's melodic hurricane together, but it's her bandmates – especially the rhythm section – who feel the most involved here, floating from serene break to frenetic sprint as smooth as the song's gauzy textures. The ebullient "Kiddy Pool Dreams" is a sharp refining of the sound that the band brought out on their debut, and a compelling argument that Pinkshinyultrablast's gossamer tempest is growing stronger with each new tune.

Pinkshinyultrablast are on the eve of a UK tour, but if they announce plans to come over to North America, that news will be posted on their Facebook and Bandcamp. Below, watch the video for “Umi”.