Nyles Lannon

Who:Nyles Lannon, formerly of the band Film School.

Where: San Francisco, CA

What: laptop pop - think Grandaddy and Postal Service, but from a place more similar to where Eilliot Smith and Simon & Garfunkel were coming from.

Why: Nyles Lannon's music is immediate. From the first strum of "Hesitation" (update: removed from below per request and replaced with the finger-snap inducing "Did I Lose You") you'll be sucked in, measure by measure, into Lannon's world of melodic gentle bliss. The parts build quickly - the guitar, then the percussion, then airy vocals and handclaps and harmony and fuzzy electro-touches - and challenge you to not be won over within the first thirty seconds of the song. Resistance is, however, futile, because Lannon's songs are like a pop music love potion. A touch of pop, a touch of rock, a pinch of psychedelia, some folk, some electronic influence, all mixed together seamlessly into songs that'll be perfect for that trip you've got planned; in a convertible, up PCH with your brand new boy/girl/puppy. Perhaps you don't generally find yourself listening to the kind of indie-pop that often finds its way into other areas of mass media (one of his songs was featured on RealWorld: Denver, Coldcase, and also in the movie Butterfly Effect 2) but guess what - you're listening now and you LIKE it. Go ahead, move on to the second song. You can't resist.

The subtle strut of "Next Obsession" will continue to win you over with just enough blues influence to remind you that Lannon is coming from a world of rock and roll. The song sounds like it could be kin to certain songs from Dungen, if seen from the point of view of a modern day Nick Drake; or even, what I might've expected the music of Beatles members' offspring to sound like if they weren't worried about things being "too late for goodbyes".

Lannon has perfected his brand of dreamy pop, deftly crafting songs almost too perfect, nearly too sugary, for gloom hounds such as myself. Nearly. Instead of pushing away from these songs, however, I find that I'm thinking about how well this music would work in a variety of real life scenarios. I'm thinking thoughts of flowers, and breezy melancholic hours spent in the park, and farmers markets, and dreaded sunny days, and empty Coney Island in the winter and, and... I love it. Color me very curious to hear what the rest of the songs on his new album Pressure (to be released on the 18th of September by Badman Recording Company) sound like.

Listen:
"Next Obsession"
"Did I Lose You"

Visit Nyles Lannon on MySpace.

See Nyles Lannon live.