Part twee folk, part ratty punk, California duo Harmony Tividad and Cleo Tucker make music that’s nostalgic for 90s riot grrrl outfits like the Breeders, while also effusing millennial ennui; Magnifying Glass, from their 2015 debut LP, Before the World Was Big, was 39 frantic seconds of string-plucking and lyrics about wanting to hold the world inside your head, while early single Blah Blah Blah was mostly built around those three words, delivered in a mocking tone. This new record builds on the latent disquiet that bubbles under the surface of Girlpool’s nonchalance. Despite the addition of a full band, it still manages to sound like a collection of lullabies. Your Heart is full of fragile introspection (“I’m louder than the thoughts I think”), Sleepless builds to a muted yet scuzzy climax, and Cornerstone alternates nursery-rhyme cadences with noisy, grungy meltdowns. With only two songs passing the three-minute mark, this is blink-and-you’ll-miss-it angst, but deserving of your attention nonetheless.
