Credits:

Maston (Frank Maston)

Description:

On his 2013 Maston debut, Shadows, singer/songwriter/sideman Frank Maston presented a nostalgic chamber pop beholden to California studio wizards like Van Dyke Parks, Brian Wilson, and Phil Spector. Four years later, the Los Angeles native’s follow-up, Tulips, shifts focus to the era’s European film music, specifically that of the French New Wave and Ennio Morricone. Maston was drawn to these overseas influences after extensive touring in Europe that included living part-time in the Netherlands (hence, “Tulips”) to play keyboards for Jacco Gardner. Completely self-made until it was sent to Jasper Geluk for mastering, the almost entirely instrumental album relies on grooving electric guitar and bass, Mellotron, and other vintage sounds to craft loose, whimsical lounge music for the indie crowd. The organ pop of “Old Habits,” for instance, features a single-line keyboard melody over sust