Over the years, the indie scene’s legions of singer-songwriters have slowly come to realise the value of production in their artistic offerings. Sure, fine, it’s just an acoustic guitar and a gradual buildup of energy, bla bla; anyone that has one random Fleet Foxes song would have this view of what is actually a much subtler genre than it seems on the surface. Sai Vsr is a young musician from the city of Hyderabad and his new single ‘Dear Madeline’ is an example of some thoughtfully written indie pop-rock. There’s more to it than your average tune, and therefore it’s well above that average. In short, it’s some good stuff.

Look, make no mistake, ‘Dear Madeline’ does fulfill every indie trope you could possibly think of. For example, do you like feeling sad (don’t we all)? Like every great indie song, this tune’s generally wistful-but-happy, bittersweet-but-cathartic air is sanded down to a nice, fine edge. That drum groove is a staple of every song you hear as a car goes off into any number of sunsets, and Sai’s vocal delivery captures that strange feeling of something ending (like a rom-com, maybe). But don’t think that Sai leans on these elements and calls it a day. There’s a bit of old Coldplay in the warmth of the arrangement (and a couple of vocal bits), some really great keys (both the electric piano and the little background melody that belongs in a great city-building videogame) and when things do let loose, they do so in a deliberate and controlled way. ‘Dear Madeline’ doesn’t waste any time caught up in its own reflection, and that results in a well-made three minutes. And well-spent for you too, surely.