By Shauna McLarnon

The international and bilingual (Spanish-English) dream-psych/post rock quartet Malka released their debut EP The Constant State on Monday and I quite fancy what I am hearing from this release thus far. A review for this publication will be forthcoming but, in the meantime, I introduce to you this eclectic, yet very grounded collective.

Currently based in New York City, Malka (made up of Darko Saric, Michael Dawson, Dave Id, and EJ DeCoske) are of mixed ethnic and geographic background, a fact that seems as intriguing as the music they are currently showcasing. The band’s music consists of complex constructs of melodic psychedelia combined with star-filled elements of dream-pop. Today, Replicant Ears offers up the video for “Mientras Se Respira,” one of the songs from the brand new EP, for your viewing pleasure.

Malka.

On the subject of the band and its diversity, I spoke briefly to Darko Saric this past weekend.

“Personally,” says Saric, “Malka is the melting pot of all the music that has influenced me during my life. From Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, and U2 to Lush, Radiohead, and Soda Stereo. Both my ethnic background and geographical history have influenced me a lot. From the moment that I began to connect with the music/artistic movement that was happening in a different cultural environment, this gave me the chance to have a different perspective on it. And gave me chance to just focus on the emotional side of the music because I didn’t understand the lyrics and I didn’t know anything about the bands that were playing it.

“But,” Saric explains, “the other band members are also involved in the songwriting process. Everything begins with me sending them some music ideas, and then we get together and begin to jam around those ideas until the song begins to appear. Sometimes the music ideas are very specific and define the song from the start, and some others are a more vague and open to interpretation.”

It appears that, whether intentionally or not, Malka are gifted at blending various genres, including dream-pop, post rock, nugaze, and psychedelic rock. Every song takes you on a pleasant trip. Some more lulling, in the spirit of Slowdive, and some closer to Swervedriver or Chapterhouse. But we’ll save our descriptions and comparisons for the full review. But just one last tidbit for now. The mastering of Malka’s EP The Constant State involved Grammy Award-winning engineer Butch Jones (Madonna, Talking Heads, Iggy Pop, The Gun Club, B-52s)!

Not convinced? Stay tuned for our full review coming soon from Replicant Ears, or check out the record for yourselves on Bandcamp and iTunes. Also, be sure to check out “Mirame,” the previous video released by the band.

– Editor.

SHAUNA McLARNON fronts the popular Canadian-Ukrainian duo Ummagma and provides vocals for Russia’s Sounds of Sputnik. Moved by her interest in the heart of the indie music universe, Shauna has helped build Ear to Ear Records from the ground up and also supports other indie artists through Shameless Promotion PR. She has spent a good portion of the last decade in Ukraine, however, not a fan of dodging bullets, Shauna is once again basing her activity out of Canada.