Homage.

Sweet Lights is the work of Philadelphia resident Shai Halperin, and his self-titled debut album compiles some of the most beautiful pop gems you're gonna hear all year - very splendidly composed tunes with an amazing sense for melody and sequencing. You can purchase the whole album for five bucks or download a few tracks for free via Halperin's bandcamp.

The song that particularly intrigued me when I first listened to the whole record yesterday was Ballad of Kurt Vile #2, a melancholic yet amazingly laid back guitar-laden tune with beautifully echoed vocals and a dreamy melody that captivated me upon first encounter. Moreover, the title kept me wondering about the background and the connection between our beloved Kurt Vile and Sweet Lights apart from the rather obvious fact that they both hail from Philly, and fortunately Halperin was kind enough to clear things up by telling me that they both had played guitar together for The War On Drugs for a short period of time, and that he admired Vile's work so much that he wanted to write some kind of homage, stylistically and lyrically leaning towards his friend's oeuvre. Accompanied by the more than sweet video below (with a slightly different mixing of the song), this adds up to one of the most wonderful stories I've come across all year.



Sweet Lights - Ballad of Kurt Vile #2