South Sea Island Magic

The band and album names are misleading. There are no sunny ukuleles on Death to Winter, and nothing about the music or lyrics is evocative of coconuts, pineapples or palm trees. Instead, this debut from local duo Gavin Snider and Jacob Simanowitz is a moody survey of the last 30 or so years of electronic dance music. The vocals on opener “Dream in the Dark” recall the hushed rapping on Pet Shop Boys’ “West End Girls.” “Tobacco Road,” with its IDM bleeps and bloops, comes across as an unsubtle Postal Service knockoff. And the synths that thunder, sparkle and soar on “Young Sun Paradox” reveal a chillwave influence. The best of the lot is “Waves Will Crash,” a fuller song that makes room for a memorable, ringing guitar line and vocal harmonies. A MIDI can take you only so far.