Freshly signed to Royal Oakie Records, Sleepy Pearls aim to bring back the easy listening of the ’50s and ’60s with their sunny new single, “I Think That’s Fair”. Produced, mixed, and mastered by David Glasebrook, this song is smooth and delicate the whole way through.
A steady Gospel organ melody begins alongside plucky guitar, thumping bass, and a clean, stomping beat. The organ rises and trembles before making way for Larsen’s honeyed vocals as she sings about familiar yearning for the perfect someone. She lilts, “I know he’s out there/ I can see it in my mind“. There is something very classic here, in daydreaming about a heartthrob.
At 1:40, the track breaks into its bridge, slowing tempo for choral Ooh’s and Ahh’s, a prolonged organ pulse. Larsen belts the title line, “Oh, I think that’s fair”. For a moment, the voyeuristic feeling of stage theater, pining and vulnerable, then rushed quickly to a short soft chorus.
This song is like an angel food cake: sweet, airy, and low-calorie. Catchy and under 3 minutes long, it’s easy to have another slice.
Sleepy Pearls is a duo of Violette Larsen and Brendan Michie, close friends whose project began as a way to soothe their unrest during quarantine in 2020. From Instagram covers of The Beatles, to releasing their debut vinyl EP, “That’s the Spirit!”, with Salton Sea Sound System, and now joining the same label that signed Sugar Candy Mountain. Sleepy Pearls’ path is only beginning to unwind.
Written by Ash Daley
