Andrew Veeder on May 4th, 2015

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Los Angeles duo The Bad Years, the project of Sami Akbari and Aaron Mort, put out their debut double A-side single in the fall, and are back with the eclectic but cohesive four-track “Beautiful Liar” EP, which is a departure from their previous material insofar as expanding their sonic palette and switching up their tempo. A reverby guitar melody kicks off the title track, a bluesy pop number with lovely she-he harmonies about someone lying to everyone including themselves to avoiding admitting they need to change, and with the lyrics, “Giving up feels so good / When your lover holds you like they should / Oh my god, yes you are a beautiful liar.” “Pieces” is a mellow ditty with a retro sheen about depending on someone else to pull yourself together, with Akbari’s harmonizing over Mort’s hypnotic late-’60s-esque riffs providing one of the sweetest moments in the collection. “Giving Up” unfolds as “a conversation between two lovers figuring out what it would take and what would be given up in order to be happy being together,” with the two exchanging sentiments against a Fleetwood Mac-like lush and moody backdrop of strings both classical and rock ’n’ roll as her voice ends up dualing with his guitar. The closer “After Me,” on the other hand, is a catchy affair about not wanting to get out of bed that sounds like a Lykke Li / Ryan Adams collaboration backed by the Gorillaz. The band is working on more material with the hope of releasing further singles, remixes and at least another EP before the year’s end, but until then, the “Beautiful Liar” EP is out May 12.

||| Stream: The “Beautiful Liar” EP

||| Previously: Ears Wide Open