Shape of the Sun have been on my radar for quite some time now. One of the side effects of running a music blog is that you receive a deluge of folks wanting to connect with you—some just want free PR, some want to be your friend based on a common interest. Luckily for me, in the Columbus area it’s been mostly the latter.

Shape of the Sun was one of those projects that contacted me some time ago via their founder Nate Linek. He seems to have lofty aspirations, but the thing that sold me on covering him for this blog was one night when I was taking a walk through Grandview Heights, a Columbus suburb, over the summer. I was breezing through Instagram stories, and something about the brief snippet I heard from Shape of the Sun in the studio caught my ear. I’m a sucker for good, pensive indie rock with a transcendent quality.

Shape of the Sun’s latest three-song release, Optimistic Eyes, satisfies that aural craving. I am hearing a lot of similarities to Tooth and Nail Records’ Civilian, who performed at the 2nd Steadfast Festival (this year is year 4): Nate’s earnest tenor vocals, the driving mid tempo songs, the vague ambient yet organic arrangements, and lush yet natural—not too lush.

This EP isn’t thrilling, but it isn’t meant to be. When I hear lyrics like “Sometime the end will come right on time / right on time” I don’t think I’m supposed to be thrilled. But neither am I sad. This song, as the other two do, has a matter of fact tone that seems to have found peace in accepting the inevitable, and that everything is going to happen for a good reason.

Shape of the Sun is a quiet force in Columbus. It’s time that the rest of the scene began to pay attention.

Follow Shape of the Sun on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.