Ivan & Alyosha just released its first actual album, _All the Times We Had_, and it’s fantastic. Sounding like a combination between Fleet Foxes and Mumford & Sons minus all the banjo, Ivan & Alyosha seems to have perfected indie folk pop. Yes, it’s a genre bender, but _All the Times We Had_ does exactly what an album should. It’s entertaining, calming and the perfect mix to listen to when midterms approach.

_All the Times We Had_ starts strong and ends even stronger. The album’s standout songs are definitely “Easy to Love” and “Running for Cover.” Both are catchy ballads that underline the record’s easy-going, calming sound. The songs aren’t just pretty though; the lyrics have some great depth and thought put into them. Moreso, Aimee Mann is featured in the dreamy song, “All the Times We Had.” It’s hard to pin down the songs of the album that don’t work because they all have a especially redeeming quality to them. There’s something absolutely magical about what Ivan & Alyosha has created.

If Ivan & Alyosha’s first album is anything to go by, there is some great music to be made in the future, and it can’t come soon enough.