Premiere: The Verigolds, ‘Sea of Zebras’ EP

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The Verigolds
The Verigolds

In their infancy as a band — one album and two singles — San Diego quartet the Verigolds have tested the waters of psychedelic folk-rock and dream-pop, showcasing the celestial vocals of Jenna Cotton. On their new EP, “Sea of Zebras,” they dip their toes in the cool pond of indie electronica.

Cotton and bandmates Eliot Ross, Ben Smedley and Craig Schreiber worked with the production team Michael Nicastro (of Magic Bronson) and Mike Malchicoff on the new batch of music. The lead single “Sirens” suggests the mythological creatures rather than the sound emergency vehicles make — the haunting atmospherics are more like Phantogram than any artist the Verigolds might have called an influence before. With tense, plucked guitars and a lush chorus, it’s a relationship song about sticking by someone despite his other temptations. “I’ll stay, I’ll follow you, anywhere,” Cotton assures.

The EP’s closer “India” drenches ’70s psychedelia in modern production, while “Polarized” and “Hypnotized” hew closer to ’80s dance-pop. In sum, the Verigolds can’t be pigeonholed, but on “Sea of Zebras” they give fans a look at pop of several different stripes. The EP is out Friday.

||| Stream: “Sea of Zebras”

||| Previously: “Walk on Water”