Ears Wide Open: El May

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El May

Australian multi-instrumentalist Lara Meyerratken — aka El May — has a pretty long resume. She’s not only done well as a composer in the film and TV industry, but she’s also either performed or recorded with artists like Luscious Jackson, Nada Surf, Crooked Fingers and more. She was most commonly associated with fellow Australian musician Ben Lee but things have changed for Meyerratken since she’s released her self-titled debut in 2010. Now residing in L.A., Meyerratken’s persona as El May has yielded a new record titled “The Other Person Is You,” which has her honeyed vocals bouncing throughout songs like “Thrills” and “I Played a Role.” The record is generally endearing with her quirky beats and light-hearted melodies but there are a couple of ballads such as “Diagnosis for the Doctor” and “Atlantic / Pacific” that round out the album’s sweet notes. Meyerratken’s energy is infectious enough to be likable but not saccharine enough to fall into the “cutesy” realm — just the way we like our indie pop. “The Other Person Is You” is out now via Rose Quartz with contributions from Allison Pierce (The Pierces), Koool G Murder (The Eels), Blake Hazard (The Submarines), Eugene Kelly (The Vaselines) and more.

||| Stream: “Thrills”

||| Watch: Check out her video for “I Played a Role” after the jump.

||| Live: El May performs tonight at Bardot as part of It’s a School Night.Â