MP3: Nina Sky - "Day Dreaming"

Everyone's favorite Queens-born female identical twin duo is back in action. Nina Sky were the vocalists on one of 2011's best left-field singles, CREEP's haunting and tense "You." Now they're back with "Day Dreaming," their comeback track supporting their upcoming album, Nicole & Natalie.

Judging from the single, it appears that Nina Sky has taken all of the compliments from their CREEP collaboration to heart. "Day Dreaming" is 200 seconds of cool and hushed harmonies, augmented by a light 2-step beat with the occasional *snap* tossed in for good measure. This song is pretty decent, but doesn't really capture the essence of "You," which was far more nuanced than the lite-R&B here. It's understandable for Nina Sky to feel trapped at a crossroads–go down the hip indie pop road or build off of their (retroactively critically approved) previous commercial success. Here's hoping they pick a road and own their decision–they're too good to fall by the wayside again.

♫♫♫ "Day Dreaming" | Facebook

Video: LINCE - "Sombras en mi corazón" [LINCE rework]

Yet another artist among the handful of Iberoamericans who’ve found Germany as the adequate place to develop their music and find a receptive audience, Madrid-born LINCE has been working as a DJ in Berlin since 2009, while also making encompassing ambient and minimal techno. The video for the rework of his track "Sombras en mi corazón," a gorgeously crafted recollection of images edited by Machines Désirantes Buró and taken from the film The Endless Summer, uses the idea of moving water in the form of ocean waves as a consistent theme and aesthetic for his repetitive, vaguely melodious and lingering sounds. The association of moving water with music is one that can be easily found recently in popular music: on the more avant-garde end, there’s Fennesz framing his records around the element of water and, on the poppier end, there’s the origin of the term “chillwave.” Here, LINCE shows us just how well he excels not just in finding beautiful melodies, but also developing the perfect texture, something that will likely gain him followers from all musical backgrounds. Sombras en mi corazón EP can be heard in its entirety on the artist's Bandcamp page.