Please Be Mine＜White Smoke Vinyl＞

Released the week of Valentine's Day 2017, Please Be Mine is a collection of reverb-washed love songs by Molly Burch. The indie pop singer brings along a childhood of watching classic movie musicals, a degree in jazz vocal performance, and an affection for the vocal era, girl groups, and Brill Building pop to her debut. The retro sounds befit the smoky, sultry voice of a vocalist who counts Patsy Cline among her chief influences. Burch and her band, which includes Dailey Toliver (Adam Torres) on lead guitar, recorded the album live at Dan Duszynski's studio in a single day, save for a few overdubs. In the process, they weaved rhythms of bygone nightclubs and saddle-shoe proms into echoes of dream pop and, on occasion, '80s sophisti-pop for a composite consistent with the contemporary indie scenes of Brooklyn, London, or in Burch's case, Austin, Texas. Speaking of Texas, subtle guitar twang graces "Wrong for You" as Burch stammers in rhythm through regrets of falling for a Lothario. Later, with a title that may evoke Patsy Cline for some, "Torn to Pieces" has an atypical melody that softly yowls and moans over warm guitar tones and hints of classic Phil Spector. ("Baby, baby, I miss your loving/Why did, why did I ever think of another?") The slow dance "Fool" is an album highlight that brings with it Angel Olsen-like intensity and Britta Phillips' soft-focus sensuality. On the whole a solid set of songs, the album's influences play out consistently across a wistfully romantic atmosphere that should appeal to both lovers and the lonelyhearted. ~ Marcy Donelson