Mice Parade

Mice Parade are a sort of posi-core post-rock. Imagine the shifting rhythms, sprawling percussion and guitar orchestration of the genre, but replace the sonic force and goofball experimentation with soundscapes like ascending bubbles, twinkling chimes, baby animals at play, and those silent cartoons they sometimes play between television shows on children's networks. Add monotone, multi-tracked male vocals and occasionally a girlish whisper so soft and delicate that you can't listen to those tracks on headphones (because they tickle). Finish it off with a layer of European electro-lounge, a la Stereolab, and you've got Mice Parade. While the very cynical will likely find this nauseating, others will no doubt find it irresistible. For dreamers who dream hard enough to need a break, Mice Parade would be the perfect soundtrack to a serene and blissful half-nap, with thoughts dissolving into shapes and colours and body seeming to float on air. There is a sad quality, but it is sadness seen through hopeful eyes. Its naivety is at times disconcerting (when the girl sings is generally when you start to feel weirded out), but usually it's just downright sweet. Mice Parade take themselves seriously enough to avoid total infantilism, but not seriously enough to seem laughable themselves. If you have no reservations about positivity, you're in for a trip — their music is original, unabashedly optimistic, and worthy of adoration from those who love the light.