New Music: CIAO MALZ – Two Feet Tall

Published On: November 19th, 2024|

Brooklyn-based indie musician CIAO MALZ – the nom de plume of Connecticut native Malia DelaCruz – has splashed her Safe Then Sorry EP in style with the winsome and woozy tones of Two Feet Tall.

Though the vocals and arrangement have a light indie, if not outright jangly, presence about them at times, Two Feet Tall looks at the world from a very thoughtful, considered place.

If anything, the winning combination of voice, lyrical content, and overall atmosphere makes the likes of British indie-folk visionary Richard Dawson a fitting musical comparison for MALZ’s approach as the well-considered stylings of Elliot Smith and Jordana.

Says MALZ, “Two Feet Tall is about the feeling of losing an inch every day you put off making that call you really need to make. It’s the pile of clothes growing bigger and feeling yourself getting smaller. Regardless of the overcompensation, the mountains to hide behind, that unsettling feeling persists.”

“I wanted to evoke the feeling of stagnation while everything else is in motion, so the lead on this track quivers in front of the persistent drums that push the scene along.”

It’s certainly a tapestry of events and emotions, in keeping with the premise of EP. “Safe Then Sorry is a rest stop on the path most travelled,” says MALZ. “I wrote the bulk of the EP after work; these stories and characters came to me subconsciously and asked to be spoken into existence. These songs are about the unlikely connections we make, how they’re simultaneously inexplicable and meaningful.”

Two Feet Tall can be downloaded via Bandcamp, where Safe Then Sorry, which is released on the 6th of December via Audio Antihero, is now up for pre-order. For EP news, be sure to check out MALZ on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok.