U.S. Girls – “Window Shades” (video) (Singles Going Steady)

Evan Sawdey: I had their EP Free Advice Column from 2013, and it was an otherworldly bedroom-dance experience, a mixing of genres and eras to create something familiar and new and the same time. This vein carries through with “Window Shades”, which, although a shade repetitious, remains curiously hypnotic, a slice of cut-and-pasted psychedelic flappercore, not beholden to any specific decade. Meg Remy is a star on the rise, so the fact she’s connected with 4AD Records doesn’t surprise me. Not going down as anyone’s jam of the year, but it leaves me intrigued enough to pursue more. [7/10]

Jordan Blum: It definitely has an intriguing build-up, like a post-rock collage fused with ’80s synthpop. Once it gets going, though, it doesn’t really evolve beyond that, so it’s stagnant and inconsequential. Both the music and images remind me of Stereolab and Gwen Stefani too, as well as Richard Elfman’s bizarre Forbidden Zone. Hell, even the vocalist seems to feel awkward and bored, making the cumulative absurdity more uncomfortable to watch. [4/10]

Chris Gerard: Meg Remy is the creative force behind U.S. Girls, and “Window Shades” is taken from her Half Free. Remy has a quirky presence, and there’s something oddly catchy in the song in a Missing Persons sorta way. It’s one of those songs that doesn’t immediately hit you but suddenly on the second or third listen you’re like, oh yeah! Now I get it. [8/10]