When listening to music, it is easy to close your eyes and mentally transport yourself to far-off places. Specifically, when I listen to indie pop, I get taken far, far away to countries I’ve never visited. Architecture in Helsinki really does remind me of Helsinki. Between boy-girl whispers and clarinet touches, I see blonde girls skipping and towering mountains of ice (or whatever they have there; like I said, I’ve never been). Camera Obscura plays, and I visit sunny Australian steppes spotted with cute kangaroos.

In essence, little of this genre of music reminds me of home, and that’s the way I like it. Nothing speaks of long winters or lake effects. I am not in love with my local scene—on the contrary I have, for most of my music-critiquing life, ignored it or written seething diatribes against it. I had previously come to terms with the fact that southeastern Michigan, specifically Ann Arbor, is loaded with way too many mandolins and aged hippies running the venues. Hence the escapism into foreign sounds.

Enter Saturday Looks Good To Me. Granted, these guys aren’t terribly new. Centerpiece of the band, Fred Thomas, has been bumming around Michigan for years in various bands and at various success rates. I just recently discovered their penchant for the ’60s lounge pop sound while remaining relative hometown heroes, as Detroit natives who spend a good part of the year touring the surrounding towns. “Underwater Heartbeat” gives off an inexplicable energy that, if not original, makes me rethink what sounds southeastern Michigan might have to offer. Maybe it’s the saxophones, or the charming “bah-bah” in the background. As much as there might be nothing to do here, and as much time as I have spent complaining about my surroundings, I cannot deny that SLGTM are as addictive as a sugar rush.

“Lift Me Up” has similar effects on my system. It’s poppy, it’s loaded with tambourine, and it has slightly twisted lyrics that are nearly unnoticeable because the girl sounds so damn cute. A familiar beat opens the track, and you know that these are all lines you’ve heard before, but it’s still charming enough to stay the night. Instead of taking me halfway around the world, the song jet-sets around the corner. The relaxed vibe takes me right into The Blind Pig, a club downtown, where the audience is filled with people I know. Regardless of what a Michigan “sound” might be, Saturday Looks Good to Me bring back my faith in local bands. And they do it without a mandolin in sight.

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