The promise of Maggie Rogers is no secret. The 22-year old artist was included on Billboard’s list of alternative artists to watch in 2017 (and many other such roundups), heralding a groundswell of hype that began around the time she made Pharrell Williams cry. Since her time in his masterclass at NYU’s Clive Davis Institute, Rogers signed with Captiol and formally released singles “Alaska” and “Dog Years.” Today (Jan. 17) she futher stirred anticipation for her debut EP by sharing the third single from it.
This one’s called “On + Off,” another indicator of Rogers’ comfort in a sonic space somewhere between electronic indie pop and the earthy, singer-songwriter persona grown out of her banjo-playing roots. But like her previous two offerings, this is no folk song: “On + Off” sounds quite contemporary in 2017 — not as singularly so as the transcendent “Alaska” — but a solid offering nonetheless. And as a wistful, glistening, downtempo pop song, it’s perhaps her best crossover play yet.
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“On + Off” appears as track three on Now That The Light Is Fading, Rogers’ debut EP for Capitol. It drops Feb. 17, a month ahead of a North American headlining tour this spring.