Seraphina Lotkhamnga on October 31st, 2013

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Kiwi band the Naked and Famous didn’t have trouble keeping the momentum once they released their smash hit “Young Blood” off their debut “Passive Me, Aggressive You” back in 2011. Singles such as “Punching in a Dream” kept fans of electronica, post-punk and dream-pop near before they launched into songs like “Hearts On Fire” off of their new album “In Rolling Waves.” The pairing of percolating synths and anthemic choruses still play a huge part in the Naked and Famous’ sound, but the band has teamed up with some stellar names in the studio this time around. Alisa Xayalith and Thom Powers, who front the band, alighted in Los Angeles to write the sophomore record, working with producer Justin Meldal-Johnsen (M83, Beck, NIN, and most recently Young the Giant) and have their tunes mixed by the famous Alan Moulder (Smashing Pumpkins, the Killers, Foals). Their music videos also continue to correlate with their cinematic sounds; the Joe Kafali-directed music video is a beautiful rush of adrenaline and an interpretation of Xayalith’s story of losing her mother to breast cancer as a young girl. The Naked and Famous’ “In Rolling Waves” is out now via Republic Records.

||| Live: The Naked and Famous play Feb. 14 at the Forum with Imagine Dragons.