Slow Pulp - Melodie

Slow Pulp's Melodie finds the Chicago-based indie rockers stretching out on their third album, trying new things without losing the intimacy that drew people in.

The band started out in Madison, Wisconsin, and built a devoted following with Moveys in 2020 and Yard in 2023, records that paired Emily Massey's unguarded vocals with fuzzy guitars and a knack for quiet devastation. Melodie marks a new step. For the first time they brought in an outside producer, Elliott Kozel, who shared the controls with guitarist Henry Stoehr and Massey, and Stoehr stepped up as a writer, penning five of the eleven songs.

"Better Man", the lead single, sets the tone with an easygoing, slightly scuffed charm, while "Not for Nothing" slows everything right down into a tender piano ballad that shows a side of the band few would have predicted. The title track and opener "Yellow and Green" balance hazy textures with hooks that sneak up on you a few listens in, and "Slip Away" brings the record to a close.

There is a patience to this album that rewards close attention, with space left between the instruments and Massey's voice placed right up front.

For fans of bittersweet, guitar-led indie, Melodie is a quietly confident step forward from a band still finding new corners of its sound.