Dent May has always trafficked in big, bright retro pop songs with a disco undercurrent, but they typically have been tweaked with faint psychedelic elements reminiscent of Animal Collective, whose Paw Tracks label released his records. Our first taste of his new album finds him throwing off those psych tendencies and careening headfirst into smooth hi-fi euphoria, and it’s absolutely dazzling.

“Across The Multiverse,” from an album of the same name, is a duet with young DIY-folk luminary Frankie Cosmos. Somewhat surprisingly, they’ve teamed up for a buoyant, string-laden throwback love song with strains of ABBA and Burt Bacharach. More than anything it reminds me of Jens Lekman at his most exultant — think “The Opposite Of Hallelujah” or “You Are The Light (By Which I Travel Into This And That).”

May has really outdone himself here; “Across The Universe” just leaps out at you. Plus, hearing Cosmos in a context so far removed from her own music is both a trip and a thrill. Her first words on the song are, “I’m falling hard into your orbit/ Babe it’s too strong to ignore it,” and the same could be said about this song. Listen below.

Tracklist:

01 “Hello Cruel World”
02 “Picture On A Screen”
03 “Across The Multiverse” (Feat. Frankie Cosmos)
04 “Dream 4 Me”
05 “Take Me To Heaven”
06 “90210”
07 “Face Down In The Gutter Of Your Love”
08 “A Little Bit Goes A Long Way”
09 “Don’t Let Them”
10 “I’m Gonna Live Forever Until I’m Dead”
11 “Distance To The Moon”

Across The Multiverse is out 8/18 on Carpark. Pre-order it from the label or iTunes.

CREDIT: Jason Frank Rothenberg