Immediately, “Talisman” soothes listeners with waves of warm, gauzy guitars. Combined with the near-cooing of the vocals’ fragile touch, the gorgeously mysterious atmosphere is quickly and effectively concocted. As far as melodic hooks, which the atmospheric shoegaze/dream-pop genre has the ability to churn out with awe-inspiring beauty, the guitar transitions from 00:50 to 01:10 are lovable examples — particularly the twangs at 01:00 and 01:10. Comparisons to My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive are enjoyably evident. The dream-pop/shoegaze/alt-rock fusion is masterfully captured here, resulting in a track that really makes me look forward to whatever else the sibling duo from Lincolnshire & London has in store.
Also recommended from the duo is the more synth-driven “Guess My Heart”, which shows shades of Prefab Sprout in its ’80s-loving smorgasbord of melodic sounds. It’s equally outstanding despite being a completely different style from “Talisman”, really showcasing the duo’s stylistically eclectic reach:
