Most people turn to music in that same way they need a good friend for a very long, mid-afternoon lunch. Whether it’s sharing news of joy, to complain about the incompetence of another, or simply filling that humanistic desire for communal support, turning to someone else is a powerful feeling and extremely necessary for sanity levels. These conversational words of tenderness bounce off restaurant walls while this metaphorical friend cocks their head slightly, reassurance filling their eyes as you speak (most likely quickly and with food in your mouth). Then comes that gentle pause that lives in every heart-to-heart, that sage wisdom is muttered aloud.

While listening to San Francisco’s Cathedrals I feel as if I’m staring across that very proverbial lunch date- their music feels heavy and wiser than I am, but the lyrical dialogue sounds as if they’re responding with care all the same. The duo, having met through a mutual friend from Stanford University, consisting of Brodie Jenkins (vocals) and Johnny Hwin (production) has been musically inseparable since January of 2012.

And like that metaphorical lunch described above, their lyrics about love, constriction and demons that hide in a mind’s shadows feel like a musical lending of a hand. Somehow taking three genres (pop, electronic, and R&B), and blending them into a medley that isn’t too contrived or forced, Cathedrals are the friend that meets you suddenly and without question to iron out life’s messy details and to make you smile while telling you the truth- we’ve all had that friend. Punctured by Hwin’s disarmingly, and unavoidably charming production, and layered between Jenkins’ deep and powerful vocals, they offer a juxtaposition that isn’t just wonderful, it’s downright brilliant.