Fronted by Elizabeth Mitchell, a woman with an exciting tendency to sing in a falsetto not many can match, the band perform absolutely perfect, skewed, disjointed pop music that sounds as though it was handed down from the heavens. Zachary Schneider (Full Ugly, The Great Outdoors) follows close behind on lead guitar, his lines interlocking with Mitchell’s to form a structural frame. This is matched by Lehmann Smith (Kes Band, Lehmann B Smith) and Dylan Young's (Way Dynamic, Great Outdoors) rhythm section, an enigma in itself. The playing is sparse, accentuation perfect.

Melbourne’s Totally Mild write songs that are lush and luxurious, polished to sparkle. Her, the band’s highly-anticipated sophomore album, is full of narrative heart, but with a Stepford sheen. Teasing out a thematic tension between the loving and the lacklustre, the domestic and the deluxe, vocalist/guitarist and songwriter Elizabeth Mitchell’s voice is crystal clear. It weaves through her band’s lyrical, immaculately considered arrangements with a dexterity that speaks volumes of the band’s capacity to let melodies grow, breathe, and take shape.

[Programming descriptions are generated by participants and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SXSW.]