Correatown is a band deftly playing hopscotch with genres. Between electronica, dreamy, folk and a very definite colour of shoegaze, their album Pleiades is full of conflicted emotions, never being fully happy-go-lucky, never giving into full-out depression.

‘Valparaiso’ is a top choice for an entry track, it mixes these dimensions of Correatown, the yearning, the very, oh so dreamy voice, the lyrics perfectly conveying this sense of looking back with both amusement and regret (“we were younger we were younger / when change found us that night”). The layered voices used throughout the album gives it another dimension; layer upon layer that make a 2-D image become 3-D, like those ol’ Magic Eye images.

Both ‘Further’ and ‘Isomer’ seem to be on the happier spectrum of Correatown‘s otherworldly sound. Never fully yielding to the power of reverb but always with both feet far from the Earth, it’s a gorgeous state of affairs.

Now, there are moments when the clash of two emotions dissipates and there’s a bare emotion waiting for you. ‘Everything, all at once’ feels like describing an overwhelming experience and sports my fave lyrical moment of the album in “I see your face hard traveling beside mine / etched a line, a crease I find when my smile fades”. A little too close to home. Love the synth (or Wurlitzer?) in the back, it still imprints the spacey feelings. ‘Shine right through’ kinda has the same groove, but a few light years, in another whole sector of the Milky Way.

Conversely, there are moments where that yearning fuels an upwards and onwards surge of energy. ‘Sunset & Echo’ might feel mournful, but that snare attack is quite the push (or shove) forward, perfectly at odds with the overall slow pace. Wake up from a depression, inactive state and move on, basically. ‘Play’ keeps the tempo up, if you need the motivation.

You will need said motivation for the starkest moment in the album, which comes under the name of ‘The Point’ – a very defeating song with a warm atmosphere. ‘La Serena’ is the explosion of that moody sadness, the letting go of a thousand drowned emotions that found a way out. The floodgates have been opened. Thankfully, ‘Turn on, turn up’  ends the album in a very high, cheery mood, so no frowny faces, please. There’s even a dreamier version of ‘Valparaiso’ at the end, just in case you really, really need to smile (and end up looking like Wednesday Addams in Family Addams Values).

Pleiades is a very lovely album  by Correatown. Listen to your copy while stargazing in one of those contemplative nights. If you like Angela Correa‘s voice, may we suggest you check Les Shelleys too?

Words: Sam J. Valdés López

Correatown Website. Twitter. Facebook. Soundcloud. Bandcamp. Myspace.