A world removed from the over-driven crunch, brawn and bash of Heliotropes’ 2013 debut LP A Constant Sea, Over There That Way sounds like the work of an entirely different band. Lead singer/songwriter Jessica Numsuwankijkul’s vocals float comfortably at the forefront of tunes that wouldn’t seem out of place on a late-’80s/early-’90s indie-rock compilation. Psychedelic prom torch song “Where You Live” sprouts a sax solo at midpoint; “My Only Friend” gives electric downer folk a good name. The aromatic “Easy” leans on effects pedals just hard enough that it feels on the verge of crumbling.
Numsuwankijkul recruited a new group of players for Over There That Way, and the decision pays o handsomely; this is a much more introspective, vulnerable album that benefits from a lighter touch. It isn’t impossible to imagine—or to anticipate—a moment when she does without the pageantries of echo and effect, and allows her songwriting to sing for itself.
—Raymond Cummings
