Singer and vocalist Chris Kittrell with the assistance of guitarist, Zach McMillan records and performs under the moniker of Baby Alpaca. And as as a duo, they’ve received quite a bi tof attention across the blogosphere for the slow-burning but hauntingly beautiful “Sea of Dreams” which over 50,000 streams in it’s first three weeks available. The album version off the song. is  sparsely arranged with just Kittrell’s vocals, and McMillan’s guitar for the first roughly 2/3s before you’ll hear a bit of piano softly in the background, it reminded me quite a bit of Echo and the Bunnymen, as well as the Smiths. 

The duo’s debut, self-titled EP was released through Atlas Chair Records yesterday, and the band has been playing several live dates to support the new effort, including a stop in Los Angeles. Kittrell and McMillan were originally just going to rehearse on a gorgeous day with the sun setting but someone decided to pull out their iPhone and started recording the video footage that you’ll see above. Although stripped down to its essential part – vocals and guitars – the song becomes more haunting and more gorgeous, thanks in part to its devastatingly elegant simplicity. And although ethereal to the point of weightlessness, there’s a deeper sense of restlessness within the song – the narrator of the song describes his thoughts as he swims out into the sea and sees two sea lions bobbing along in the ocean.