An album billed as “a unique mixture of indie rock and shoegaze” deserves to be approached with caution, but, as Atlanta-via-Long Beach duo XO display with their debut LP, Heart, there's a way to straddle that divide without appearing either trite or self-indulgent.
There's a bittersweetness across the record, exemplified on Waste, which douses the world in a washed-out filter, but never overwhelms the eardrums. It's a change from the pop-punk stylings of their original band, Say Anything, for Jake and Jeff Turner; a considered sound that reverberates long after the listener puts down their headphones.
