Some great lyrics and a natural feeling to the simple groove eases us in; soon that up-and-down acoustic guitar line begins to swirl above the nimble bass. Marmalakes, with their single Slow Dance seem very much to go their own way. I hear some echoes of Elliot Smith and perhaps Nick Drake, but the production style and the guitar work come together in a way that is unique.

For me it always comes back to melody, and the effortless duet here is what puts this over the top. It feels like this song was found in the belly of a ship that was lost at sea; not so much written as discovered. It's a pure expression of something untinged by expectation. Enjoy.

Marmalakes is the Austin, TX, group led by Chase Weinacht and Josh Halpern.