- Melbourne’s Hello Satellites began as a solo project, which evolved into a studio collaboration and has now emerged as a fully fledged band in the lead up to sophomore album 84000. Blending folk sounds with a melancholic pop reverie, the album is yet another introspective gem from the band but with much more depth than ever before.

The subtle layers of instrumentation and vocals make for a refreshing take on the increasingly popular indie-folk-with-pop-sensibilities formula much loved by many other Australian artists. Despite the myriad of elements in Hello Satellites, there’s a sparseness to their music that allows the different components to breathe.

The album opens with Television Screens, a lighthearted pop track driven by a wide selection of percussion instruments that are complimented by an ethereal string arrangement. Eva Popov’s vocals are wispy and delicate but the short and sharp verses balance this well, effectively building upon the minimalist structure.

Shangri-La and Joy Inside Our Skin are both tracks that build momentum as they progress, incorporating a collage of instrumental layers and backing vocals. The earlier tracks are more heavily dominated by pop melodies, while the latter half of the album takes a darker turn with brooding tracks and more visceral imagery in the lyrics. In Love exemplifies this darker side of Hello Satellites, a frenetic bass line increases in intensity throughout the track creating a sense of urgency and more foreboding themes than the band are typically known for.

A minimalist piano accompaniment serves as the foundation for Josie In Love, another gloomier track that really highlights Popov’s vocal talents. There’s a new level of maturity in 84000 that somewhat escaped Eva Popov when she wrote Hello Satellites’ debut album as a solo artist. Although the bulk of the album was still written by her alone, the addition of new band members has pushed the sound outward and resulted in a much more collaborative and cohesive album.

- Clare Armstrong.