by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Seven years is a very long time to wait for a band to release their second album, but we couldn’t be more excited for the return of New York’s Anna Altman. Freightliner, released back in 2017, introduced the skeletal brilliance of their sound, wrapping warm melodies with subtly complex rhythms, digging into repetition and dynamic structures with one foot in art pop and the other in minimalist lo-fi indie rock. Lucia Arias (guitar/vocals) and Christian Billard (drums) recorded that album’s follow up back in 2019 and 2020, and then, the world went to shit, and well, things sat while the pair became increasingly busy with other projects (such as Raisalka and Qlowski). While the band expanded to a quartet last year, Annatomic, their upcoming album, was recorded by Raphael Carleton and Billard during the duo era, an ambitious album that swells with syrupy hooks and tightly wound charm.
“Balloons,” the record’s lead single pairs Arias and Billard together with Anna Wolk (violin), Catherine Wolk (cello), and Carleton (piano), transforming the band’s dry barebones approach into something lush and sweeping. At it’s core though, this is still everything we’ve come to love about Anna Altman, from the contemplative progression to stunning ease in Arias’ gentle delivery. “Balloons” evolves from one dreamscape to the next, radiant and full of elated reflections, a song that remembers the past with a light touch, a look back that feels possible because of a better day ahead. Swirling with the occasional harmonies and the breezy use of the added strings, there’s a glow in the indie pop malaise like watching the sun rise on a new era.
If you’re in Brooklyn, catch Anna Altman at Our Wicked Lady on Thursday, May 16th.