Tenek --- Another Day, On the Wire

In anticipation of the release of EP+1 by Tenek, I downloaded and listened to the above cited works. If it is difficult to counterfeit good taste, superb taste is impossible to duplicate. And Tenek demonstrate superb taste throughout both of these releases --- musically, lyrically, and production-wise. There simply isn't a false step.

What should pop music do? First, it should impart drive in a way that is relentless, should seem familiar enough to engage without being cloying, and then should take the listener somewhere new. Almost everything on the radio does the first two by some measure, but almost none achieve the third. This is where Tenek standout.  They wear their influences lightly, and always in service of twisting them. If they are a house, then once past the front room one never knows where one might be taken, and one can only dimly guess the layout. Second, a good pop song references only itself. One doesn't need the song before or after (Suede were masters of this). Tenek succeeds here. Third, one should want to hear the song that comes before or after. To here a Tenek song is to be drawn along, left satisfied but wanting.

If you had three releases to choose from and could only afford one, please put anything by Tenek at the top of your list.