Josaleigh Pollett and Crowd Shy - Like a River (Audio Antihero) [Alt-Pop]

It's an old cliché that it takes ten years to become an overnight success, but never a truer word was said. Based in Salt Lake City and aided by a musical upbringing, Josaleigh Pollett has been beavering away for well over a decade now, and will release her fourth album this summer. It seems like her dedication as well wisely teaming up with the enigmatic, well-named Crowd Shy to give her folk rock-rooted sound a new millennial twist, are slowly but surely paying off.

After the indietronic joys of "The Witness” tipped the world off to the impending album, Pollett changes tack somewhat on "Like a River" with a softer, gently propulsive nu-bossa-like, folktronic sound, that whilst comfortingly pop-infused, also, due to the inventive production, doesn't sound like too much else around. I like it.

An effected vocal loop is wrapped around some slow-building, quirky drum programming to ease us into this sweetly told tale of resilience in the face of nagging doubts and an unrelentingly depressing news cycle, that is seemingly designed to spread fear and uncertainty rather than knowledge. The tune then weaves its easy, breezy course, egged on by the clanking, clunking household percussion, summer-primed guitar strumming, Brazilian vibes, celestial backing vocals,and an easy pop main vocal that belies the gently protesting lyrics. It's a beach bar-ready alt-pop tune with a healthy dose of attitude, and coupled with "The Witness" marks Pollett out as a quietly alternative, pleasingly eclectic artist with something to say. It appears those years of foundation-laying are paying off.

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Playlist Companion

Find Pollett in the Slow Alt-Pop Playlist.