Minipop

“Like I Do“
from the album A New Hope
2007
iTunes

Minipop is a new San Francisco band that has come out of the gates charging — not only with an impressive debut record — but with heaps of local press, a SXSW showcase, and nods from the City By The Bay’s biggest modern rock radio station Live 105. From A New Hope‘s catchy opening single “Like I Do,“ the stage is set for a sonic feast of lush, shoe-gazey pop that recalls the delicate aesthetic of Lush and Cocteau Twins blended with the psych splendor of My Bloody Valentine. Most tracks on the album are highlighted by vocalist Tricia Kanne’s languid, yet pitch-perfect vocals laced with just enough reverb to drench most tracks in melodic bliss without turning them to mush. Minipop’s engaging sound is also flanked by the unique guitar and keyboard interplay of Kanne and guitarist Matthew Swanson. Tracks like “Precious” and “Someone to Love” swirl with spacey synth lines and soaring guitar textures that adeptly embody the band’s own self-described sound of “…marshmallows on Morphine and Care-Bears on Xanax.” While A New Hope is fervently anchored in ultra-sweet, shoegaze pop, the band does break free briefly with more strident, upbeat tracks like “Generator” and “Butterflies,” two catchy, toe-tapping tracks that lean closer to the Teenage Fanclub or Cardigans brand of the pop spectrum.