Melted Toys

Established in 2009 as an indie pop outfit from San Francisco, Melted Toys originated when high-school friends Daniel Rosado, Steven Harkins, and Brian Wakefield first joined forces. After testing various lineups, the musicians locked into a configuration of two guitars, bass, and drum machine for both recording sessions and performances. An appearance at the city's Ever Gold Gallery led Bay Area indie label Underwater Peoples to reach out, resulting in the group's first EP, Washed & Dried, issued in 2011. Their distinctive melodic guitar lines and faint jangle pop aesthetic prompted parallels to the British cult band Felt. Drummer Ole Haarstad came aboard soon after the EP appeared, rounding out the quartet. Work on a debut full-length then commenced, yet multiple setbacks pushed the project back. Early recordings vanished when a band member misplaced the laptop containing them on a municipal train. The group reassembled by relocating to Los Angeles, while singer/guitarist Steven Harkins traveled through China and Japan, composing the bulk of the songs that would form their first album. The self-titled LP finally surfaced in July 2014, with mixing handled by Rusty Santos of Animal Collective and Panda Bear renown.