Bliss. Bliss. Bliss. Three Real Estate albums of continual musical wonderment and now for their fourth. Three years since their last – there has been an empty Real Estate plot that we have been longing to be filled by some chilled out grooves as frankly, no one does it quite like the elegant mellow mastery of the band from Brooklyn. A few things have changed since their 2014 breakthrough album Atlas – firstly, main songwriter Martin Courtney has become a father and has moved to upstate New York whilst bass player Alex Bleeker has relocated to California, then one of the founding members and guitarist Matt Mondanile has parted company from Real Estate (to focus on his Ducktails project) which has let long-time friend of the band Julian Lynch be added to the lineup. Will much have changed consequently? After hearing the first two singles from In Mind, they may have just stepped up to another level.

Opening with the debut single from the album – ‘Darling’ gives the listener everything they would have been wishing and wanting to hear, gorgeously crafted guitar melodies complimenting soothing vocals that quietly evokes a slow head nod to the lazy groove. Something I couldn’t have anticipated was the album starting with synth notes, not unwelcome, instead it adds an “almost” danceable feel to the song – a gentile progression in sound and an idea perhaps from the Grammy-winning producer Cole M.G.N. (Beck, Snoop Doog, Thurston Moore, Julia Holter) who worked on the album with the band in Los Angeles. ‘Serve The Song’ follows with another sound we rarely see in Real Estate’s music, a wha wha distorted guitar sound acting as the heart of the in the slow and hazy sun-draped psych number. Another subtle nuance added to In Mind that brilliantly complements the effortless sound of their pastoral-pop, is the sound of a harpsicord amongst the swelling guitar reverb in the gently propulsive lucidity of ‘Stained Glass’ – duly showing that reinvention doesn’t have to be drastic, and yet can stay in the confines of their much loved sound.

Expression hits a new height in the meandering melodies of ‘Two Arrows’. The jangly surf rock tune features Martin’s silky soft vocals harmonised with psychedelic effects on top of sustained synth chords, before the nearly seven-minute-long track transforms into a trippy dream with the introduction of raw electric guitar and a wandering Hammond organ, building the tension on the once subdued song until it slides into silence. But it is not all about subtle reinvention – ‘Holding Pattern’s sweeping 80s synth sounds may be a nice new idea but the propulsive bass melodies and clean electric guitar patterns could have quite easily fitted onto 2014’s Altas. The track showcases the outstanding craft to Real Estate’s lush music, a sound that has matured extremely well with time, moving from the DIY/lo-fi sound of their early material to the crisp, polished and smooth production of now. Take ‘Same Sun’, one of the many highlights on In Mind, a track that would have fitted beautifully on their self-titled debut album but with an upgrade in production, the song’s raised to the next level.

Real Estate’s music may be seen as inoffensive, unobtrusive and painfully pleasant, but there is something so satisfying, calming and hypnotic about the album that quietly demands you to listen to it. It never forces itself onto you but remains completely captivating. They haven’t by any means pushed through any musical boundaries on In Mind, just purely making music that is as stunning in its craft as it is a pleasure to listen to. Songs have the same mellow and emotive mood that makes them perfect for repeat listening, as well as the right amount of wistful nostalgia that can latch onto memories from the toughest times and help aid you through tricky moments. After losing a key member in Matt Mondanile, whose guitar playing was a pivotal and very noticeable aspect to the band sound, Real Estate have responded with what is debatably their best album to date.
Iain Lauder

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