Mermaidens

Wellington based trio Mermaidens have built a catalog that can alternately access shimmery melodic pop as well as a jagged, angular, late post-punk meets early indie rock type sound that brings early Throwing Muses to mind for some. They were at a slightly grimmer place originally, with an initial pair of albums that has the grit factor turned up. They lightened up in subsequent albums, perhaps leaning towards the Belly era Tanya Donnelly, to strain the analogy a bit. On the other hand, their self-titled 2023 album finds them inconspicuously trying on some edgy motifs, often blurred by the catchy nature of their songs, which is to say, there is much more going on stylistically in this band's music than the apparent pop/rock seesaw.