Plastic Picnic - “Slide”

SXSW 2023 - OEB Score: 8; Popularity Index: 4

Pairs Well With…The War on Drugs, Real Estate, Future Islands

Last year Plastic Picnic finally shared a debut full-length As Long As You Need, six years since their first single and an expectedly tight effort that could only come from a tried, experienced band. Gone are some of the earlier, experimental approaches that defined their self-titled EP and 2019’s Vistalite, and instead there’s a dream-pop vibe through much of the record. It’s a grounded form of dream pop though, one based in 80s/90s/00s pop/rock influences and delivered with comforted sweetness. Guitars have just enough reverb and vocals just enough echo to not sound too saccharine, so strongly crafted that it feels like these songs have been around forever. (Kevin McStravick)

2018 Review: Together and studied, Plastic Picnic’s songs take soft and sharp turns throughout each of their tracks, not relying on traditional verse/chorus patterns but never really sounding ‘experimental’ when just taken in pieces. Guitars, synths and percussion interplay with the mentality of a rock band, but produced in a washed-out fashion to build a sense of comfortability so uncommon with any group’s debut. The Brooklyn band credit 80s influences as a primary driver of their music, but Plastic Picnic doesn’t sound throwback at all.