Real Estate - "Haunted World"

Real Estate have always admired The Feelies, their New Jersey indie rock predecessors. Though Feelies frontman Glenn Mercer is on the record saying he doesn’t think Real Estate sounds like his band, to me, it’s hard to deny their impact, especially as time goes on. Critics noted the influence in Real Estate’s early work. The two bands have shared bills over the last 15 years (including what looked like a very fun daytime gig at a middle school in Ridgewood, NJ) and frontman Martin Courtney even rocked a Feelies shirt during Real Estate’s 2014 appearance on Conan. Their latest single, “Haunted World,” shares many of the best characteristics of a mid-period Feelies song.

On “Haunted World,” the guitar riffs meander in a floating and free manner, particularly in the bridge between the first chorus and verse, and the pedal steel accents add a certain Americana flare. Acoustic and electric guitars converse in perfect harmony throughout and the sharp snare and auxiliary percussion elements give the track some added personality. It’s a Feelies-esque formula (minus the pedal steel. I’m fairly certain there’s not a single Feelies song with pedal steel), which you’ll never hear me complain about. They’re my favorite band. Real Estate is smart to grab the torch.

Stream the track below.

“Haunted World” is the second single from the band’s forthcoming album, Daniel, which is out on February 23rd via Domino. You can pre-order the album on vinyl via Bandcamp. Keep up with Real Estate by following them on Instagram.