Photo courtesy of Soft Swells

L.A.’s Soft Swells are all about setting a mood on “Put It on the Line,” the first single off  the band’s eponymous debut LP. With a heavy synth line and a pounding drum machine at the outset, singer Tim Williams’ instructional lyrics (“you gotta put it on the line / for the one you love),lays the groundwork for a propulsive piece of advice that you can dance to.

“I wanted to write something that was really direct,” Williams says. “The idea was to have the verses challenge the choruses and say, ‘Stop making excuses in your life.’” And when you couple a message that to-the-point with a synth line from an old Moog Prodigy, you’re on to something. Despite the track’s obvious electronic base, though, there’s an organic, 21st century lo-fi heart to it –  and Williams says that came from the song’s origins. “All my songs start out on an acoustic guitar and the built-in recorder on my iPhone,” he says.

Soft Swells arrives February 28 on Modern Outsider.