It could be easy to forget that Nite Jewel's Ramona Gonzalez was at the forefront of some of the sounds that dominated the 2010s. Dreamy electro-pop tinged with R&B exploded during the four years between 2012's One Second of Love and Liquid Cool, and during that time many of Gonzalez's contemporaries opted for glossy approaches that blurred the boundaries between the indie and Top 40 versions of this style. With her third album, Gonzalez redefines that line -- for herself, at least. Gonzalez felt One Second of Love's shiny surfaces and emphasis on pop diluted her music, and at times, the album bordered on overworked. She reclaims her independence on Liquid Cool, a term she's used to describe her aesthetic: Gonzalez recorded it on her beloved eight-track in a studio she built herself, and released it on her own label, Gloriette. Just in case anyone was unclear on her intent, "Nothing But Scenery" and "Was That a Sign" begin the album with the kind of mood-setting washes that defined her early work. Indeed, there's a slight murkiness to Liquid Cool that feels like a throwback to Nite Jewel's debut album, Good Evening, but these songs feel more cohesive even as they threaten to evaporate -- perhaps a lingering influence from the One Second of Love days. "You Now" layers Gonzalez's voice into something both driving and delicate, while she gives just enough structure to "Over the Weekend"'s breezy laments.

1		Nothing But Scenery
2		Was That a Sign
3		You Now
4		Kiss the Screen
5		Over the Weekend
6		Boo Hoo
7		I Mean It
8		Running Out of Time
9		All My Life

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