Album Review: Mint Field - Pasar De Las Luces

It's becoming harder to stand out in the increasingly cluttered dream-space where legions of bands are trying to squeeze their own chapter into the shoegaze/dream-pop handbook.

But part of what makes sonic explorers Mint Field different, other than hailing from the Tex-Mex border town Tijuana, is the haunting, ethereal, drifting singing of Estrella Sanchez, who uses her voice as an instrument rather than to convey specific meaning as it aches, soars and lulls in its own subtly inimitable way.

There is something of the spirit of Perth's much-missed Radarmaker, despite the gulf of distance between them, with similarly tidy-but-effective drumming that propels their beautifully nurtured, organic sound. Among their tougher cuts, the tender high-plains drifter Ojos En El Carro builds to an overdriven EFX free for all, while the quiet-loud contrasts of Bootes Void show how authoritative Mint Field can be.

It's hard to pin down that special ingredient that makes Mint Field's Pasar De Las Luces unique, but it's a carefully constructed, time-proof debut that will reward different yields even after many listens.