Yndling - Time Time Time (I'm in the Palm of Your Hand) (2025)

A few months after this year's EP, Silje Espevik known as Yndling, released her sophomore album filled with the signature cute and dreamy pop music. She used the songs we already know and love and built an LP around them, making it one of the best dream pop albums of the second half of the year.

You can't help but smile when you hear Espevik's voice sounding like the summer evening sun touching your skin feels like. A bit dreamy, very melodic and soft. You don't need much more, it's enough to have hazy indie pop sounds around it and a perfect dream/indie pop music is being born. Especially that songs like Even if it's a Lie (I Don't Mind) and (especially!) As Fast As I Can are already imprinted onto my music mind since the June EP.

I like how the light and swift songs can, when it's necessary, be weighed down with some sweet guitar noise in the background, adding to the atmosphere and balancing the twee/tropical fragments (like in the trip-hop-esque title song) so well. The album is finished with two strong candidates for the best track at the album: the extremely catchy Falling Behind and the most artsy Some Things You Don't Get. There is a lot to choose from on this release, that's for sure.

Time Time Time (I'm in the Palm of Your Hand) costs 10 USD.

Check: As Fast As I Can

Country: Norway

Genre: soft dream pop

Label: Spirit Goth Records

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Cool Heat - Levitate (2021)

Cool Heat is Eden Sierotnik from Chicago, member of a dream pop band Color Card and an artist who  creates very dreamy but also lively sounds. This year's Levitate is his second solo EP )as far as I found out) and it's a lot of airy fun. 

The release is filled with fun and creative indie pop with a big dose of tropical-like, carefree tones (the cover art picture is no coincidence here, that's for sure). The electronica in the backgrounds sets a fast pace of the songs while the overall dreamy ambiance makes it relaxing and easy to listen to. You can feel the sun through this music as if it was on your face and everything problematic in your life seems to lose importance. Sierotnik's voice is another thing, it is so airy and oneiric, no matter how fast the pace, the music is bound to be soothing and ethereal. I especially like Drift, a song with the most outstanding electronic "riff", one that stays in your mind for a while after the song ends.

Levitate costs 4 USD.

Check: Drift

Country: Illinois, US

Genre: tropical dream pop

Label: Spirit Goth Records

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Cathedral Bells - Ether (2021)

When I first heard their single Dark Aura, I knew it's something big. And indeed, Ether makes a really good synthgazey dream pop concoction. And in my humble opinion, this album is actually a lot better than the debut and I couldn't not post about it here.

Their sound is based on very post-punk/synthpop synthesizers and generally flat sound that channel the stifling atmosphere of clubs in the 80s. as I imagine it. No wonder they call themselves as "born from the depths of obscure analog gems". On the other hand, the vocals are extremely airy with a strong taste for melodic singing. This makes the whole thing actually very lively and pretty much forcing the audience to dance with ease. And there's Dark Aura, a fantastic song that marries everything that's important in this music: extremely airy chorus, melodies, hazy atmosphere and post-punkish composition. That's some strong candidate for the dreamy hit of the year.

Ether costs 8 USD.

Check: Dark Aura

Country: Florida, US

Genre: dreamy synthgaze

Label: Spirit Goth Records

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