Who? Each member of this Athens, GA quintet -- vocalist/guitarist Daniel Lawson, vocalist/violist Karolyn Troupe, drummer Lucas Jensen, bassist Steve Miller, and keyboardist James Sewell -- has a day job (student, print shop worker, publicist, biochemist, and landscape architect) that gets put aside for work on their full-length debut, Sorry About the Flowers.

What's the Deal? Venice Is Swimming might be a more appropriate name for this orchestral indie pop five-piece, as their soundscape is always lush even when it seems ready to drown in shoegaze-worthy atmospherics. Each track -- especially "Pulaski Heights" and "Buried Magnets" -- brings the fuzz, which the band smartly beset with Lawson and Troupe's melodic boy-girl harmonies and the beautifully agonizing sweeps from the viola.

Fun Fact: "We cover songs by Glenn Frey, Genesis, and late-period Ramones," drummer Lucas Jensen told Spin.com. "So our musical taste is highly questionable." JULIA SIMON

Now Hear This:
Venice Is Sinking - "Pulaski Heights" (Download MP3)

Talk: Does Venice Is Sinking's debut float? COMMENT

On the Web: veniceissinking.net