YACHT - "Works Like Magic"

This November on Downtown Records, look for a new EP from synth pop duo YACHT. The title of this forthcoming project: Where Does This Disco?

While I've never loved a YACHT album in the past, Jona Bechtolt and the more recently added Claire L. Evans usually come through with at least one single that really grabs my attention. "Works Like Magic" is that single this time around.

From the bassline to the gurgling synth leads, this song is sharp, sweet, and irresistibly danceable. While I'm not expecting this EP to floor me, there's nothing like a good single to pique interest.

YACHT - "Utopia / Dystopia (The Earth Is On Fire)"

A new "double video" for two new YACHT songs from the duo's recently-released LP Shangri-La. The first song, "Utopia," is a poppy number with some quirky guitar layering and slippery electronic bass sounds. The spatial 3D landscapes and sharp visuals of the video complement the clean-cut sound of the first song. Halfway through the video's 7-minute length, the retro-styled world deteriorates into space and "Dystopia" begins. The darker, but still playful sound of the second cut benefits from the eerie galactic visual stylings in the video's second half. Eventually, Jona Bechtolt and Claire L. Evans are running on treadmills through space. It's a bit of a trip. Check out the double video above, and find the new album on DFA records.

YACHT- "Utopia"

The second track to drop from YACHT's forthcoming album, Shangri-La, which is looking at a June 21st release on DFA Records. We've already dropped “Dystopia (The Earth Is On Fire)," but this track is much more nimble.

"Utopia" does flips over quick guitar chords and a speedy disco bassline. I love how the doubled vocals lay so cultishly against each other in this song, too. I just picture a group of 30-somethings dance in multi-colored track suits to a crowd of people they're trying to fool into joining in with some sort of pyramid scheme--that's how I see it anyway.

YACHT- "Dystopia (The Earth Is On Fire)"

MP3

YACHT, like many other DFA Records artists, creates a synth-heavy style of dance pop. But what sets YACHT apart from the rest of the pack is their cultish style and lyrical themes revolving around religion and society at large.

Their '09 LP See Mystery Lights had some essential tracks for that year on it--you know, like this one.

"Dystopia (The Earth is on Fire)" is the first single to drop from the duo's forthcoming album, Shangri-La. Though the hook is a little tired due to its willingness to "let the motherfucker burn," the sentiment of everything going to hell in a handbasket is pretty good. The groove and verse lyrics are pretty spectacular, too. Officially looking forward to this.