A fine line separates memory from invention, and the 2000s revival has offered one of its most captivating through-lines: old reference points colliding in new arrangements. Although the broadly sketched “indie sleaze” craze sometimes read as cosplay for some artists—famous, perhaps, for the way it borrowed James Murphy’s swagger—basslines, textures, and a playful tension in ear’s music create a sense of being rooted in the past while leaning toward what’s next. In other words, ear’s sonic world navigates between eras with a mischievous, forward-looking impulse.
The essentials: ear is a two-person electronic twee outfit (often labeled “indietronica” by default) formed by Jonah Paz and Yaelle Avtan, started at Bard College two years ago and now splitting their time between London and Upstate New York. Their name nods in part to a track by His Name Is Alive. After stirring interest with their 2024 debut single Nerves and the 2025 debut album The Most Dear And The Future—a concise, clearly defined statement of ethos and mood in just 16 minutes of music—they secured one of the early signings to A24 Music, the label run by the acclaimed film company and distributor A24. This Friday they’ll release their second album, Rumspringa, and they’re keeping things unusually quiet to the point that we can’t reveal the cover art until the music lands. (UPDATE: It’s now visible at the top of this post.)
As with Bassvictim, ear’s sound instantly conjures the early 2000s, yet the way the pieces are assembled feels distinct, forging unexpected shapes out of familiar ingredients. The mix leans heavily toward indie pop—Paz even released a twee solo record called Exit last year—yet it also traverses glitchy IDM, moody post-rock, found sounds, slowcore, and bursts of jagged, sawtooth synths. Picture the Postal Service’s synth-pop reimagined by the earnest minimalists múm, or the xx’s intimate vocal harmonies in the company of the Books’ sonic collages. And though ear’s fingerprints echo Y2K-era signals, the band speaks to current peers like avant-garde rock fantasists caroline or the “emo ambient” icon claire rousay. It’s telling that “Nerves” benefited from placement on Spotify’s CPH+ playlist, which highlights Copenhagen’s burgeoning alt-pop circuit.
Put another way, ear feel like kin to anyone funneling deep longing into hushed, electronically organic warm-blooded expressions. Rumspringa brims with private feelings often pared down to open-ended fragments, which remain slightly obscured by Paz and Avtan’s soft, almost sleepy delivery. It’s as if you’re catching a glimpse of their most intimate wishes—perhaps even whispers from their subconscious—yet the emphasis stays on mood and impression rather than concrete detail, a vibe that suits music that invites you to step into someone else’s dreams.
Named for the Amish custom of allowing youths to live briefly outside the community’s strict boundaries to help chart their life course, Rumspringa is pitched as a “choose life” record, though ear remain playful about what that phrase truly entails. Promo materials describe the collection as exploring how pursuing personal freedom can be both perilous and beautiful. While the lyrics tend to leave much unsaid, they act as a driving force for the music itself, as Paz evocatively explained in a No Bells interview last year: “We spend most of our time choosing the sounds, because once you know the thesis of the song it’s really just a matter of gathering evidence.”
It should come as no surprise that the source material can be equally enigmatic. “That’s what we adore—the sounds that are secret, even to us,” Avtan told No Bells. “There were pieces I sent Jonah where the instruction was, ‘You can’t know where this comes from, just treat it as a sound.’” Paz added, “So much of our process involves not telling each other exactly what we’re doing on a track, which gives us a quirky vocabulary of elements we tap into since there are plenty of things we haven’t spoken aloud.” Paz and Avtan are introspective introverts with a fondness for careful gatekeeping, so it feels almost inevitable that they keep a portion of their craft to themselves. Yet when it comes to working as a unit, their connection is finely tuned. “The way we make music is basically watching the other person’s facial cues to see what expression they’re making,” Avtan told The Face.
On Rumspringa, this emotional choreography guides us to a space that sits somewhere between a physical place and a mental state. The lead single “Ne Plus Ultra” erupts with high-pitched synths and a frenzied velocity, like a snowstorm of sound. “Threads” unfolds with a glittering music-box keyboard motif, clipped spoken samples, and spinning synth textures. The lo-fi, bedroom-pop guitar of “Nothing’s Open” yields to “F,” a track that calls to mind Burial’s brisk, nocturnal explorations of London’s nightlife. Over half an hour, ear wield a familiar palette with the fearless confidence and inventive thrill of youth. They may not grant full access, but they invite you to share in their revelatory moment as nostalgia is reimagined into a soundtrack for a new generation’s memories.
Rumspringa is released 5/29 on A24 Music.
Other notable releases this week include:
Boards Of Canada’s Inferno
Paul McCartney’s The Boys Of Dungeon Lane
Kurt Vile’s Philadelphia’s Been Good To Me
Feeble Little Horse’s bitknot
Iceage’s For Love Of Grace & The Hereafter
Rare DM’s Attention
Elder’s Through Zero
Villagerrr’s Carousel
Balmora’s These Graven Halls
Kim Petras’ Detour
Greg Mendez’s Beauty Land
Turnover’s Down On Earth
The Bug Club’s Every Single Muscle
Callahan & Witsher’s Sorry to Hear That
Guided By Voices’ Crawlspace Of The Pantheon
Francis Of Delirium’s Run, Run Pure Beauty
Latto’s Big Mama
Cole Berliner’s The Black Door
Joshua Ray Walker’s Ain’t Dead Yet
Violet Grohl’s Be Sweet To Me
Sparta’s Cut A Silhouette
Dogstar’s All In Now
aespa’s LEMONADE
Saint Agnes’ Your God Fearing Days Are About To Begin
Ghinzu’s W.O.W.A.
Veps’ ChurchyardStreet 8B
38 Spesh’s 8 Shots
RaiNao’s Marcria
Mark Trecka’s Romance Wake Naming
Scottie Miller’s Hello Pain
Mad Iris’ Mad Iris
Don Williams’ EPILOGUE: THE CELLAR TAPES
Shinedown’s EI8HT
The Greenberry Woods’ It’s All Good, Sugar
Young Miko’s Do Not Disturb (Deluxe)
Static Dress’ Injury Episode
YG Kayboe’s Blood On The Pen 3 Mixtape
Widemouth’s No Gasoline
HECATE ENTHRONED’s The Corpse Of A Titan, A Lament Long Buried
Yottie’s CASINO Mixtape
Rosie Carney’s doomsday (night tapes)
Gigi Masin’s Movement
District Five’s GLUT
GODTHRYMM’s Projections
TRUEANDTRUE’s NOSEDIVE
KÁRYYN’s PHYSICS UNIVERSAL LOVE LANGUAGE (PULL)
Oakwood’s Blurred Away
Monolord’s Neverending
Phoenix James’ Teeth
Tenroc’s God Is A Person
JP Soars & Anne Harris’ Gypsy Blue Revue
The Hands Free’s Upturned Cup
The Maureens’ Don’t Give Up
Wev’s OST
Danalogue’s Teleportations
Lenka’s Good Days
Doublespeak’s Doublespeak
Devin Townsend’s The Moth
Camille Camille’s Enchanted Sea
Kris Tiner & Cathlene Pineda’s Sung
All Them Witches’ House Of Mirrors
Susto’s Susto Stringband (Volume 2)
Lennie Rayen’s Entertain The Space
Tory Silver’s In Through The Front With Lasers
Kikù Hibino & Merzbow’s Rococo ∞ Echomatter
Tomorrow Tomorrow’s Dwelling
Renée Fleming & Béla Fleck’s The Fiddle And The Drum
David Torn’s i imagine a place not the same
Paper Pools’ Everything
Russ Irwin’s King Of A Thousand Fools
Lyra Pramuk’s Hymnal (Resung)
Keyland’s Knuckle Sandwich
Vic Bondi’s Vic Bondi And His Issues
Labrinth’s COSIMC OPERA ACT II
Funebrarum’s Beckoning The Void Of Eternal Silence
Neil Young & The Chrome Hearts’ As Time Explodes Live Album
The Who’s Live At Eden Project 2023
The Fall’s Singles Live Vol. Two 1980–83
Ducks Ltd.’s Modern Fiction (5 Year Anniversary Edition)
Various Artists’ Power Ballad (Music From The Motion Picture)
Various Artists’ K-POPS! (Music From And Inspired By K-POPS! Motion Picture)
Various Artists’ Where The Willow And The Dogwood Grow
The Monkees’ Good Times! (10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
Voka Gentle’s Domestic Bliss: Remixes
KulfiGirls’ Divinity (Deluxe Edition)
Hunx And His Punx’s The Punkettes EP
Eli & Fur’s Dreams At Dusk Pt. II EP
Opal Mag’s Goodbye Lavender EP
DOSS’ DOSS EP
Crimes Of Passion’s Coasting EP
thistle.’s backflip EP
Heavee’s Mainframe EP
John Gallagher Jr.’s Almost OK EP
Saint Harison’s ghosted EP
Siyahkal’s Corrupt EP
Ablation’s Lethal Abuse EP
KIMIKO’s Modern Dance EP
Maiah Manser’s Fifth Dimension Part 1 EP
Wesko’s Familiar Spirits EP
Kuleeangee’s Love & Affection EP
Heidi Curtis’ Hollow Heart EP
Rules’ As Soon As I Get Home EP
Ayase’s dialogue EP
Die Twice’s Accept Me Like A Lie EP
Sierra Spirit’s Rodeo Clown EP
corook’s How do I relate to you? EP
