Earlier today, Irish indie-pop artist PAULI released his first EP, Isolation Station.

The Cork-born, Galway-raised and Dublin-based musician is hard to pin down. With electronic drums, 90s-tinged guitars and a singer-songwriter sensitivity, PAULI sounds most like bands such as Charly Bliss who break down the walls between rock and electro pop.

Isolation Station followed the release of PAULI’s debut single, ‘Cocoon,’ on July 5. ‘Cocoon’ has many of the strongest features of the EP’s other two tracks: a catchy, melancholy hook, a driving rhythm and gorgeous mixing from Stephen Lovatt of Little Wolf Studios.

PAULI also released a music video to support ‘Cocoon.’ In the video, which was produced by Marc Corrigan, a caterpillar goes through the lonely motions of quarantine, watching TV, browsing the internet and scrolling dating apps.

“Sitting by the window frame / the newsreel plays the same old same again / but I can see you flicker through the glass / and what I wouldn’t give for just one touch of your hand,” PAULI sings during the song’s chorus, which evokes 90s rock bands such as REM in its rawness and simplicity.

In a press release, PAULI confirmed that the inspiration for ‘Cocoon,’ and the EP in general, was the experience of lockdown.

The project’s second track, ‘The Fear,’ is more traditional, tacking the trauma of binge drinking. Over densely layered guitars that recall the strokes, PAULI sings “Two double rums / let’s have some fun / with all these werewolves in the night.”

Isolation Station’s final number, ‘Storms,’ is its slowest and most emotional. With help from a mournful horn section, PAULI takes us through a lucid dream in which he must untangle memories of love and loss.

You can stream Isolation Station on all major services today. Check out the music video for ‘Cocoon’ below.