Morning Tide (Chop Shop Records)

Indie-pop fans rejoice: Los-Angeles based quintet The Little Ones has officially come out to play with its bubbly debut romp, Morning Tide. Released in the height of pumpkin season with cold weather right around the corner, the album is a happily harmonized reprieve inspired by the warmth of the sun. The band's folksy-psychedelic tunes are quintessentially Californian with a retro feel. The title track's buoyancy perfectly befits the album's consistently cheery vibe. "Morning Tide," an effortlessly poetic beginning, flows into "Ordinary Song," a chipper sing-a-long. "We laid our hands against the carpet of the whitest sand," murmurs lead vocalist Edward Nolan Reyes on "Boracay," summoning colorful seaside imagery. The keyboard sets a marching beat to "Everybody's Up to Something," highlighted by clever lyrics, "I heard the march of a million strong," juxtaposed with a chorus of "Hey hey ahs" marching in perfect synchronization. "Waltz" is a modern, poppy take on the classic beat with lyrics suggesting a more heart-tugging, reflective side: "Years go by when you're small / Hours are minutes that beat with your heart / Old mother told you to wait for your turn / Won't you learn?" Listeners are kept awake throughout the duration of the disc's ten airy tracks and are gently put to bed with "Farm Song," a slow, dream-like tune with Beatles-inspired background harmonies. The Little Ones are aptly named -- with eyes closed, it's easy to picture little kids building sand castles or blowing bubbles on a beach -- yet they don't stray far from the predictability of the genre so comfortably inhabited by bands like The Shins. Even so, fans of this musical variety will agree: That's definitely not a bad thing.

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