Starling Share New EP Plexus and Stop-Motion Video for “Sunbeam”
Los Angeles four-piece Starling share Plexus, a concise new EP featuring “Sunbeam,” “571,” “Anti-sonata,” and “See the Water.”
NEW RELEASESNEWS
MADDI DUARTE
9/18/20262 min read
Photo: Alex Han
Los Angeles four-piece Starling have released their new EP, Plexus, via broke Records. The five-song collection brings together material introduced through four singles across 2026, with the band placing a clear focus on melodic hooks, pop sensibilities, and a sparse approach to arrangement.
About the album, they explain that the process started earlier this year. “The rollout of the songs on ‘Plexus’ started early in 2026, without knowing what would become of them. We wanted to start putting new material out there, but only decided on the EP once a couple of songs were already out,” Lead singer and guitarist Kasha Souter Willett explains. “We started to feel these songs fit together and how they were emblematic of this era of Starling. Many songs on the EP, such as ‘Sunbeam’ and ‘See the Water ’, are songs we have been playing live for a while. But ‘571’ and ‘Anti-sonata’ were born more in the shed that we recorded these songs in before bringing them to the stage. After experimenting with longer songs on our record Forgive Me, we wanted to focus on songs that were faster and more fun to play live.”
That approach is apparent throughout Plexus. “571,” released in February, was recorded partly live in a single day and addresses the fear that examining something positive too closely could cause it to disappear. The EP opens with “Sunbeam,” which now arrives with an official music video directed by Meriel O’Connell. “Anti-sonata,” released alongside “Of Today & Canon” in March, developed entirely in the studio around a poem written by Willett. “Of Today & Canon” provides the EP’s instrumental track, while “See the Water” completed the run of previews in July.
The “Sunbeam” video also developed over an extended period, with the band and O’Connell refining its concept before filming. “The music video for Sunbeam was initially going to be for a song that was scrapped entirely from the EP. We felt the concept fit much better for the song anyway. We worked with director Meriel O’Connell over a period of many months on concept and shooting, going with a play on the princess and the pea fairy tale with the use of stop motion for the dolls.”
As a release, Plexus benefits from its concise format. The songs move through different approaches to Starling’s writing and recording process while maintaining the band’s emphasis on melody and direct songwriting. “Sunbeam” establishes the EP’s accessible side, while “571” and “Anti-sonata” demonstrate the different ways the material was developed.
Following a spring tour with Total Wife, Starling are set to support she’s green and Cryogeyser on their respective tours this fall.
Listen to "Plexus":
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