Delorean‘s debut EP, “Ayrton Senna,” rises out of the sounds of synthesizers and bass beats before being overtaken by candy-coated pop vocals that are airy and floating, somewhere in between the style of the Dirty Projectors and Cults. The vocals are vague, perhaps antiquated, not lyrical – in that sense it is not pop music, but if you peel back the many layers of sound to be heard in this album what you have is, essentially, pop music. It’s that retrofitting of a genre that is representative of the status quo with an avant-garde sheen that gives Delorean its sound, and the “Ayrton Senna” EP its appeal.

It sounds like music for a summer drive, to the coast perhaps, the speakers blasting, eardrums pounding with the spine-tingling joy of loud music, music for friends, for lovers, for people who can sit in a car and not talk, just enjoy music and the comfort needed for an absence of conversation to be pleasurable.

This album is danceable, but you don’t have to dance to it. It’s not especially singable, but that lyrics aren’t hard to learn. The music is beat-driven, catchy, like the sound of Ratatat, Air and Phoenix crushed together and strained for any seeds or pulpy bits, the smooth, upbeat sound that remains is the kind that is sophisticated and adventurous enough to attract indie elitists and fun enough to woo MTVers. It’s music for a party, and partying, but whether its in the background or the foreground is up to you.

Delorean is a Spanish dance-pop band that formed in 2000, though their early EPs earned them little fame; they started out as a punk band before transitioning to electronic music. They created their own scene at a Barcelona club, playing live music there weekly, giving their sound the space to expand, evolve, mature.

I just discovered the “Ayrton Senna” EP this week, though it was released last summer to generally positive reviews, though the album didn’t gain them much exposure outside of the electronic genre.

Delorean’s first full-length album, “Subiza,” was released on April 19, and it picks up where Ayrton Senna left off, a mix of epic, spawling, layered tracks full of danceable music and pop vocals, though their sound has picked up more obvious “Merriweather Post Pavilion” nuances. All for the better, I say. Delorean is an interesting up-and-coming band that hasn’t quite hit the spotlight of stardorm yet, content for now to say in the realm of obscurity and quasi-fame among niche groups. However, “Subiza” definitely shows that this band has the potential to become a huge hit, particularly because of their ability to transcend genres and create a sound palitable to a wide array of tastes.

Jordan Jacobo
Columnist Jordan Jacobo can be reached at [email protected]