Watch: GEMS – “Pegasus”

You know when you hear something that is just so deeply gorgeous that everything else stops and all you can hear is the song? Yeah, that’s how we felt on Friday night when we had our first exposure to the sound of GEMS and their latest track, “Pegasus”. Aside from wondering how on earth we had failed to hear anything from them before, we were blown away by their simple and atmospheric dream-pop.

Here’s a quick introduction to GEMS and then we’ll get back to espousing hyperbole and gushing about our new favourite band.

The official line: ”GEMS is Clifford John Usher and Lindsay Pitts with additional drums and percussion by Sean McVey. The band formed in 2012 in Washington D.C.”

Yep, that’s it. However, according to the SXSW showcase schedule page for the duo; ”GEMS was born in a hundred-year-old carriage house in Washington D.C. in August of 2012. They recorded their first singles in an empty beach house in October in the Outer Banks, NC before being evacuated due to hurricane Sandy”.

All of which we like to think is very very true.

Back to the music.

“Pegasus” is all shimmery soft, wistful music for a moonlit walk on a beach. Lindsay’s feather-lite vocals drift on the breeze of the delicate, fuzzy synths and faint beats. The occasional ahhhh-ahhhh-ahhhhh’s float along like a whisper, sounding delightfully reminiscent of the “thou shall not fall” bits from the theme song from The Lost Boys. That’s probably the most random connection we’ve ever made in a song but it only makes us love it more.

You know what else we love? The video.

Lindsay tells us that they shot it themselves ”using an iphone, some matches, and the light from the setting sun”. Could we be any more in love with them? It’s like they looked up ‘what makes Alphabet Bands tick?’ on Google and ticked off all the boxes. The simple monochromatic video looks exquisite and is the perfect accompaniment to a track that feels like you are listening to it through lace curtains. Take a watch and get lost in their beautiful dark and dreamy pop.

You can catch GEMS live at SXSW with shows currently confirmed for:

Wed. March 13 – Crack in the Road + Disco Naivete
12 noon – 12:30 GEMS @ B D Rileys
204 East 6th Street, Austin, Texas 78701

Fri. March 15 – Gold Robot + Father / Daughter + Small Plates
12:15 – 12:35 GEMS @ The Grackle (outside stage)
1700 E 6th St Austin, TX 78702

Sat. March 16 – Official SXSW Showcase
8:00 – 8:40PM @ Hickory Street
800 Congress Ave

Stalk GEMS: Soundcloud / Bandcamp / Website / Facebook / Twitter