Deep Sigh // Selfish Ocean

The return of the Midwest emo sound to listener’s favor is a welcome coping mechanism for the world today, such as it is, something Cleveland-based Deep Sigh thoughtfully deploy on their debut Selfish Ocean. Opening with wistful, tone setting portraits “Art School” and “Catholic Guilt,” the album’s soft chiming guitars and nuanced synth lines sweep and build in texture, drawing on the dynamic prowess displayed by Dylan Glover and producer/mix engineer Jacob Kirkwood’s prior projects Item and times10. This approach is best exemplified on highlight “Nova Scotia,” as nimble riffs and melodic moping swell and give way to cascading blankets of dreamy, enveloping sound. Instrumental “Big Sky Montana” is a notable transition to the album’s strongest leg, where the groovy Frank O’Hara poetic allusion “Headphones On” (“All I want is endless love”) transitions into the sax-laden meditation of “Pristine” and rollicking math rock closer “Reverse.” Nostalgia drips from every chord of Selfish Ocean, resulting in a studied, aching exploration of memories made clearer by hindsight and blurrier by emotion.

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If you like Selfish Ocean, check out:

• American Football by American Football

• Downtiming by Camp Trash

• “Comfort Blanket” by Options

• Days by Real Estate

• breathe by Tiny Moving Parts