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The indie pop/jangle pop, with neo-psychedelia references quintet, Real Estate, from New Jersey, currently based in Brooklyn, is now back after three years since their hiatus ‘Atlas‘ (Domino, 2014) with the new album ‘In Mind‘ (Domino). During this interval another change has taken place in their lineup.Matt Mondanile’s  (guitarist, singer, songwriter) leave to concentrate on his Ducktails’ project, and his replacement from the guitarist Julian Lynch.

This latest offering is more romantic and melancholic than ever, with narrative lyrics, while it is still keeping the nostalgic jangle pop character of the 60s and music identity of Real Estate. Fact, which is more than obvious to their audience from the album’s first song and lead single ‘Darling‘. The second track ‘Serve The Song‘ can be nothing else but a personal reference about how the frontman Martin Courtney (singer, guitarist) feels about the music and why he continues to write songs and play music.

As the album moves on, some sort of sonic change is revealed along wih a change in the mood of their music. Anyone could easily think for one more time the replacement of Mondanile but alongside this doesn’t drive to any kind of disappointment. But instead, it sounds like a welcome step ahead that should be accepted in the end of the day.

In ‘After The Moon‘  things are becoming very emotional. The change of mood in their music can’t become any clearer than this, as it gets in the truly romantic following track of ‘Two Arrows‘. The common warmth of their sound remains in ‘White light‘ and  ‘Same Sun‘ but with less emotional intense and more nostalgic, with the  guitar arrangements revealing a surf pop attitude and West coast music of past decades.

Finally we could say that ‘In Mind’ moves in the above two music axis: Firstly, avoiding to repeat previous works and secondly exploring new musical paths but without altering their identity.

Eleftheria Gesou