Magdalena Bay: Bimbo Robot Music Drew Rodriguez-Michel
If you, like I, find yourself scrolling through your saved albums on Spotify, YouTube, or Apple Music, perhaps searching for the right vibe or perfect length for your Goodhue-to-Weitz walk, look no further and hesitate no longer.
In 2018, they began an odyssey of self discovery, experimenting first with the synth. At In as fairy-godmother-like a position as possible, I be- this point, their queath to you a gem I recently discovered and have taken niche was the atthe liberty to define: bimbo robot music. You heard me. mospheric vibe Specifically, a band called Magdalena Bay. Their newest that was slowly album, Mercurial World (2021), is their claim to fame. gaining populariIn what I can only describe as an electro and synth-pop ty and soon to be fusion, this bright, bubbly, and in-your-face album is seized by the upbeautiful from start to finish. Their intense electronic and-coming bedroom pop genre (screams in Clairo). sound, however, is a relatively recent and much-needed Their 2018 single “Waking Up” debuts a variety of glimdevelopment in the scope of their discography. mery synths to foster the all-too-famous starry sound, and is topped off with lightly auto tuned vocals. Altogether, the sound is nowhere near full bimbofication. A point of notability, however, is the single’s cover art, which epitomizes the tumblr-girl-to-bedroom-popfan pipeline (it’s time we start talking about it). With newspaper clipping wings, Tenenbaum stands, turned away and oh-so mysterious looking. If nothing else, I give them points for the nostalgia factor this brings.
Image: Billy Bratton
2019 is a fresh start for the duo, and, by my measure, their biggest jump sonically towards their current sound. Upon listening to their first EP day/pop, I was immediately greeted by a steady synth presence, including both keyboard and guitar. Production-wise, sparse and unfocused synths of earlier singles have been largely replaced by a decidedly 70s and 80s disco sound, and the airier vocals present a small but important departure from previously throatier belts more fitted for mainstream pop hits. Their lyrics are still as cliche as ever, although finally present a cohesive story (obviously one about love). Best off the EP is “Head Over Heels”, which, although I can’t claim to love today, I know highschool sophomore me would have adored.
The pop duo Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin began releasing music in 2017 after first meeting as highschoolers. For the majority of their discography, their sound more easily fell under classic and indie pop genres. Think: a very watered down Katy Perry—heavy on vocals, diminished instrumentation, and formulaic song structure. Of course, being new to the industry, their lack of ingenuity was somewhat understandable, but I reserve the right to judge their 2017 single “Neon” as little more than a Garageband beat. 2020 is the year I can safely say they win their synth NF011 | 5
