I might as well start off by admitting that I had no idea what Polynya meant at first, so in case there’s anyone else as uneducated as me out there:

“A polynya (common US spelling) or polynia (common UK spelling) (pronounced /pəˈlɪnjə/) is an area of an area of open water surrounded by sea ice. It is now used as geographical term for areas of sea in Arctic or Antarctic regions which remain unfrozen for much of the year. It is a loanword from Russian: полынья, which means a natural ice hole, and was adopted in the 19th century by polar explorers to describe navigable portions of the sea.”

What I did know from the start though was that Polynya is also the name of a band, a great band even. They hail from Carrboro/Chapel Hill/Durham, NC and are the following four sea creatures: Andrea, Luke, Pat, and Thom. Their sweet, keyboard-layered indie-pop has so far resulted in two albums: the self-titled debut, and the brand new Crop Rotation. It’s a pleasant little record with cute melodies, boy-girl vocals and a chilly electronic veil. Personally I also get a little twee and sometimes even shoegaze feeling when listening to it, which is always more than welcome around these parts.

~ “Orlando” ~