Magdalena Bay, the Los Angeles-based alt-pop duo consisting of Mica Tenenbaum and Matthew Lewin, are still on their Imaginal Mystery Tour, promoting their 2024 album Imaginal Disk, and also developing a full-length movie to accompany it. Amid all this, they have surprisingly just shared two more singles, “Human Happens” and “Paint Me A Picture,” following their previous dual-track drop in September. These four singles are the first glimpses into their new music, and listeners are already captivated. While honing their romantic and maximalist sound, these tracks find the duo evolving — both emotionally and lyrically.
While the singles were officially released to streaming Sept. 26 and Oct. 17, this isn’t the first time fans have experienced them. On the band’s current tour, they’ve played some of these tracks already: “Second Sleep” goes over particularly well in a live setting, taking audiences on a musical and emotional journey built through its contrasting sections. The verses are laid back with a groovy bass line and simple percussion while rising strings and rapid drum fills build toward the triumphant chorus. Then, the lush orchestration drops off like a waterfall dissipating into a river. There may be an instrumental disconnect in this track due to the rapid shift of the backing music, but in the sparser sections, the lyrics really shine through. They advocate for choosing love even when it’s demanding, instead of “sleeping in” and avoiding emotional confrontation. In true Magdalena Bay fashion, “Second Sleep” ends with a final, electrifying surge that makes its statement about love feel that much more necessary.
If “Second Sleep” is an anthem played on stage, then “Star Eyes” is a song you might hear coming from the other room where a group of friends are jamming out — a track that features steady percussion, a melancholic piano line and soft saxophone. But this calm is only temporary; the song comes to a dissonant end with the strings squealing upward and the horns joining in, adding bursts of light. Although some of Magdalena Bay’s music is heavily layered and hard to follow, there is a refreshing sense of clarity in “Star Eyes,” where no sound is out of place.
While the September set of singles’ themes feel like individual revelations for Tenenbaum, her two newest singles, “Human Happens” and “Paint Me A Picture,” find her commenting on issues plaguing our world today. “Paint Me A Picture” delves into the quest for authenticity in an age when social media makes emotions and experiences feel artificial, making it even harder to connect with others. Tenenbaum sings that “The camera doesn’t really see / It just stares,” and offers that she’d rather have someone “paint (her) a picture” — a physical symbol of human creation and an emotional act of genuine self-expression.
“Human Happens” extends this message, warning against the dangers of not being able to connect to others. Most extremely, it describes how people acting in their own self-interest often leads to more conflict and war, or, as Tenenbaum calls it, “stupid havoc.” As the title implies, it seems inevitable that this will continue, since creating “stupid havoc” is just what humans do. During the verses, the instrumentation creates an industrial feel through heavy distortion, electronic sounds and mechanical rhythms, underscoring the confrontational lyrics. She alludes to Greek mythology, tying spirituality to real-world problems. Conquerors are equated to Icarus, as their ambition for futile fights usually ends in their demise. She also asserts that they need to take accountability for their actions, referencing the story of Helen of Troy.
Together, these singles explore complex themes around human nature and nominate introspection as a means to move forward. Even if one doesn’t search too deeply within the lyrics, the instrumentation is still incredibly powerful, both catchy and rich. For a duo, Magdalena Bay’s production has always felt powerful and extremely intricate, a true testament to their artistry. The only question that remains now is, are these four singles B-sides to Imaginal Disk or precursors to something bigger? Whatever it may be, it’s clear that Magdalena Bay has not chosen stagnation. The duo continues to put out music that feels personal yet otherworldly, proving that pop can still surprise, challenge and move us all at once.
Daily Arts Contributor Tobin Saxton can be reached at tobinsax@umich.edu.
