The Spires

If we were doling out prizes for most fitting album titles, this year’s top honor would go to The Spires. On Eternal Yeah, frontman Jason Bays captures a vibe that’s both beautifully timeless and quietly hopeful. In the years since first worming their way into our hearts, The Spires have grown into one of the South Coast’s best-kept secrets; they pen warm, jangly, Cali-indebted pop rock rooted in the tones and chords of bands like Television, Pavement, and The Velvet Underground. Still, Eternal Yeah’s biggest coup is that it sounds like a Spires album. The source material is there, but it takes a backseat to Bays’ melancholy inflections and vibrant guitar tones. Take, for example, “Nervous System,” a track whose opening chords offer a loving nod to Neutral Milk Hotel, conjuring thoughts of the strummy intro to “The King of Carrot Flowers” before Bays’s voice falls in. It’s just one of many instances on Yeah where The Spires turn their touchstones into jumping-off points. We’re just pleasantly surprised to see how far they’ve reached.