From the opening notes of Fingers‘ latest release, Little Waves, it is apparent that the ambient Columbus-based trio–comprising Yashi Bellomy (lead vocals/guitar/piano/reed organ), Maxwell Slater (drums/auxiliary percussion/vocals) and Vincent Valentino (bass/lead vocals)–possesses a deep musical prowess that makes itself more evident as each song unfurls. The six-song album begins with “She Said,” a piano-driven track that showcases Bellomy’s vocals, which drip in a snarl that conjures up Interpol’s Paul Banks or Alt-J’s Joe Newman. The second track, “Blue Bird,” slows things down, showcasing a hazy trumpet dancing intermittently with Bellomy’s voice before the tempo picks up around the four minute mark, creating an acrobatic guitar-focused layering of intricate parts that drive forward into an explosive finish.
“Towers” features laid back instrumentation and an impassioned eruption from Bellomy with “I’ll never die for the old man / looking down on me from on high.” The fourth and fifth tracks–“So it Seems” and “Bones”–are a bit too misty, but the latter does end with some interesting percussive work from Slater that required a few more listens. But the bluesy return of Bellomy’s voice in “Medicine Man” brought back the focus. Jazzy interludes from the piano rise to the forefront, dancing delicately just beneath the vocals, before they claim the attention they’ve demanded.