Cherry-Picked

my end-of-college obsession hasn’t seemed to quit.

LA-based indie alt-pop duo, more*, is effortlessly cool and to me, embodies nouveau Americana: they’ve managed through their sound, look, and feel to give off a Brooklyn-esque edge, Midwestern down-to-earthness and California coastal cool all at once. They’re chill, but not sleepy… confident, yet relaxed. Their music manages to relentlessly meet me where I am: cooking? Crank it up! Running? Keep truckin’! Working? Zone right in! Chilling? Light a candle and let it wash over you. 

Overdramatic? Probably! 

more* comprises duo Kane Ritchotte and Malcolm McRae (*shockingly,* no Tate relation), their projects catalyzed by wicked-good producer Tony Berg. more*’s Spotify bio (if anyone bothers to read those) describes their first projects as an outpouring of creativity on the heels of hearts and bands breaking (to some degree), with Malcolm’s relationship crumbling and Kane’s exit from Portugal. the Man. What I hear isn’t despair, but honesty about new circumstances, for better or for worse. 

My foray into the world of more* was 2021’s “Green,” and something about the chorus gave me déjà vu, and not because I had actually heard anything like it before: the melody hit me so right, I felt there was no way I didn’t already know the song. At the time, I was a deeply overinvolved yet wildly under-directed college senior, and like many with no idea what’s next and not much to look forward to (yet), my head swiveled left and right, comparison proverbially thieving my joy. Benchmarking myself against my far more involved, directionally clear peers left me down in the dumps, and “Green” felt like a rope thrown down to help me start climbing out. “I might be getting greener, I’ve never been the jealous type” grabbed me by the backpack straps, screaming, “you’re not alone, babe!” 

Since that euphoric discovery, other more* favorites have become “God’s In the Details,” “All-American Guts,” “Lazy James,” and of course, their most-streamed to date, the ever-sweet “I Believe in You.”

What I love most is that more*’s EPs aren’t a brand unto themselves. With minimalistic titling and cover art, their music is what shines, almost like a thesis, rather than a brand. There’s a fullness to their sound, ideas, and audio/visual world that isn’t cheapened by earworm-y, rat-race-reaching for multiplatinum listenership. And frankly, their stream quantity may suffer for it (2024’s delicious, laid-back “Look Alive” is chilling at only 17K streams as of Oct 2025). I find it so unbelievably refreshing in this late-stage capitalistic, “monetize it all!!!” era. I feel deeply connected to their discography because I feel like a minor shareholder in their vision, rather than a spectator to their success. 

In deep diving on these two, I found and loved this (somewhat random?) interview with Kane and Malcolm, laying out how their first EPs 1/2 and 2/2 are titled very intentionally, distinctly two parts of one whole and from one period of time. In the interview, they talk COVID isolation, the role of visual inspiration in their sound and cover art creation, and the importance of the arts, in general. From Malcolm, I loved:

“The arts have always been a more palatable way to confront the human condition. Like choo-choo train-ing a spoonful of what would otherwise be too bitter to swallow. That’s not a responsibility we take lightly. No matter the size of our reach.”

The interview is definitely worth the read, with insight into their motivations as artists and as a duo, and even their interpersonal dynamic and humor/sarcasm. Read more (pun?) here, if you feel so inclined. Another electric interview from Alt Press lives here, too. In it, Kane and Malcolm are deemed “sonic soulmates.” Presh!

In my opinion, the greatest angle to understanding an artist (and finding more of what you’ll already probably like) is streaming the Artist Playlists featured on any given Spotify artist’s profile. In this case, more*’s Asterisk playlist makes EP 2/2 make SO much more sense. It lives on their artist page but was born in Malcom’s personal Spotify account. According to Asterisk, their sound is deeply informed by ‘70s and ‘80s classics and deep cuts alike, along with some new cool (Tame Impala, King Krule, MGMT, etc.). Bowie, Sly & the Family Stone, the Strokes, and Beatles members’ solo projects, mainly Harrison and Lennon (and a little McCartney), trickle throughout:

Not only do I love a peek behind the curtain on album ideation and an artist’s personal song curation, but I also relish the opportunity to find a few new-to-me songs. Better yet is length of it: sometimes I fear artists get self-conscious about their influences and either keep their publicly posted playlists too brief or highly, overly curated. I don’t want to see 10 songs that signal the *utmost* niche taste… I want to see 73 tracks that reflect authentic listenership and genuine inspiration, and Malcolm and more* nailed it.

Truthfully, I’m concerned that more* potentially leans “concept art” as opposed to a forevermore project (given hints at releases we have yet to see), but I’ll take whatever they’ll give me. It’s unique for me to have legitimately evvvvery song by an artist saved, but not a single more* release has passed me by. I gathered all of ‘em in my preferred order on cherry-picked: more*. Don’t settle for less, listen to more* (ha!).