New indie pop band shows off retro-R.E.M. dynamics on debut LP

Baltimore band Outer Spaces is exploring a world of fantasy pop on their debut LP, A Shedding Snake, now available on Don Giovanni Records. Inside their watershed disc, the trio, led by lead singer Cara Beth Satalino, showcases an indie pop sound burning with a college garage rock ambience. According to Under the Radar magazine, the album “is brimming with delicate, elegantly crafted songs punctuated by incisive lyrics and unexpectedly vivid choruses.”

The thirteen track collection, mostly all mid-tempo and entirely composed by Satalino, is inspired by Murmur-era R.E.M., surrounded by light alt-rock instrumentation anchored with breezy electric guitar and folk-esque drumming. The opening track, “I Saw You,” is the LP’s first single and comes with a music video that breezes through a calvacade of building structures and avoids a single glimpse of the band. “Born Enemy” is also supplied with a music video; this time, the trio can be seen playing in a background of neon blue, all shot through a camera’s glass-shattered lens. Songs like “Words” and the melodic “Shade of Grey” highlight the tenderness and warmth of Satalino’s vocals, a style reminiscent of Marina & the Diamonds and the bird & the bee.

Outer Spaces is currently taking on an ambitious 28-city tour, and will kick off a number of stops in the South, one in Birmingham at Desert Island Supply Company (5/31) with other stops in New Orleans and Houston to follow. The tour will cover several stops in California and Washington throughout much of early June before heading north to Vancouver, Montreal, Chicago, Brooklyn and Detroit by July. They will later perform at the Fields Festival and the New Alternative Music Festival.

You can stream the album in its entirety below.

To learn more about Outer Spaces and future tour dates, go to www.outerspacesband.com.