Mrs. Magician’s second album for Swami (and third overall), Bermuda, is also their first record since 2012. While I can’t speak to their back catalog, Bermuda is eleven songs and thirty-six minutes of power pop influenced by surf music and produced by John Reis. Highlights include “Reborn Boys” and “Jessica Slaughter.” Interestingly, the lyrics aren’t as happy and sugary as the music might suggest—there’s a lot more about confusion and alienation in life as opposed to tunes about girls, sand, and sun, which is a welcome relief to where lyrics often go with this music. That being said, musically it’s always been difficult for me to get into surf-influenced tunes, but I’ve gotta give Mrs. Magician some credit for being a band that put together a solid album doing something different, lyrically, than their genre might normally suggest. –Kurt Morris (Swami)