Porcelain Raft

Strange Weekend Secretly Canadian****

Years ago Mauro Remiddi moved from Rome to London, which explains the pleasing discombobulation on a debut record that lands the soft, incisive punches of a flyweight boxer. As with Perfume Genius or Ariel Pink, Remiddi's musical landscape is nostalgic yet forward-looking, experimental yet traditional. Drifting In and Outis an unusual lullaby with heavy guitars and fluttering effects, while Put Me to Sleepis a glitchy, haunting pop song. Backwordsis a lovely folk- inspired ballad, and Unless You Speak from Your Heartan upbeat, Supertramp-infused song. Remiddi subtly introduces dance and trip-hop influences in I f You Have a Wishand Is it Too Deep for You?, with the latter opening like a flower when the harp-like guitar comes in. This is bleary-eyed yet radiant music that recalls MBV and Phil Spector, whose influence infuses the lush End of Silence. porcelainraft.com

Download tracks: Put Me to Sleep, Unless You Speak From Your Heart