Cut of the Day: "Vestal," Swahili

Portland quintet Swahili has spent the past several years making psychedelic trance music, but their newest single, “Vestal,”  is not so straightforward: It's a vaguely bluesy, shoegazing track that permeates layers of driving percussion and entrancing guitar riffs. Frontwoman Van Pham’s first lines are notably a quotation from an African-American gospel: “Swing low,” she sings over the subtle yet danceable synths. At one point, Pham sings “this is the end of something,” and coupled with the band's nods towrd electronic music and R&B, it suggests Swahili is headed in a bold new direction.