Natasha Khan aka Bat For Lashes might just be the most slept-on artist right now whom people will look back on in ten, twenty years and say “Yeah, I was really into Bat For Lashes back in the day.” But they weren’t. Because they’re rotten bastards who don’t tell the truth.

“Laura” is a somber affair for Natasha; the polar opposite of the dancefloor ready (if the night club happened to be goth night, anyway) stomper that seemed to signify a more agressive turn in the Bat For Lashes ouvre. “Laura” starts and ends on the same piano riff that seems just a string-section away from a major pop ballad – yet Natasha knows to keep it simple and her intrinsic knowledge that the simplicity of the setup will carry the song is spot on. In less capable hands this could be a disaster – a piano ballad from an indie songstress conjures up evocations of Bethany from Best Coast’s strange semi-public meltdown – but “Laura” holds up to repeated listens. “The Haunted Man” should be quite an interesting new album from her once it drops on October 23rd.

h/t: Pitchfork