Loquat: We Could Be Arsonists

Pretty, pretty pop that cover a wide range of topics, including space exploration (“Time Bending”, monsters (“Monsters”) and the infamy of criminals (“We Could Be Arsonists”). Vocalist Kylee Swenson Gordon leads this San Francisco quintet through 10 tracks with aplomb, understatement, and a coolness that’s so cool it’s hard to believe. Of particular note are the songs “Seeds”, the dark bygone era pop of “Change of Scenery”, and the closing “Up Late”. The album’s penultimate track, “Kindling For Fire”, is arguably the most unsettling for the way that, at its core, it’s pop song but that it never quite settles for the expected, shifting shape and moods in ways the listener could not possibly anticipate. It’s hard to thwart pop expectations but Loquat has done so via We Could Be Arsonists. They could be also be stars.