New local dream-pop outfit “Goth Dad” recently celebrated the release of its first EP. The dreamy, eighties-inspired release is a fun and unique addition to the Hub City’s already diverse collection of art and music.

The self-titled release certainly pushes musical boundaries, combining the warm atmospheric elements of early nineties shoegaze with the bouncy synth melodies of late eighties pop in a way that guarantees it stays in your head all day.

Frontman and guitarist Ryan Sherrer said the overall response to the release has been positive so far. Keyboardist Joel Gallaspy added that the diversity and acceptance of Hattiesburg’s music community has contributed to the band’s recent positive feedback.

“Being kind of an experimental band from the south definitely has its challenges,” Gallaspy said. “Hattiesburg is really cool because everyone here has been really receptive and supportive of our sound and what we are trying to do as a band.”

Additionally, the release was entirely self-produced according to Sherrer.

“So far the reception has been really good, which is a big relief to all of us because we did all of this one hundred percent ourselves,” Sherrer said. “It’s kind of scary putting that out there when other local bands have more polished records coming out.”

Despite the release’s catchy synth leads, ‘hummable’ vocal melodies and groovy bass lines, Sherrer explained that the songs on the EP were written as a method for dealing with unpleasant experiences.

“I have all these memories from a few years back that aren’t so pleasant,” Sherrer said. “I am way too happy now to write sad songs, but I’ll reflect on these memories and use them as inspiration. This makes those memories not so bad anymore because some art came out of it.”

According to Sherrer, this idea of writing ironically pleasant-sounding songs with sad lyrical content was heavily inspired by eighties goth- pop superstars The Cure.

“I have always loved that sound,” Sherrer said. “It’s fun to jam to it, but people can also really relate to the songs. We really tried to embody that on this release.”

“Goth Dad” is available now on iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon, Spotify and Bandcamp.