Begin

Begin

At times on their sparkling debut album, Jillian Hervey and Lucas Goodman almost sound like they’re showing off. There’s almost no genre the pair—she purring vocals, he glitchy beats—don’t try on for size and strike gold. The New Yorkers are comfiest with staccato, funk-lined R&B (“Wonder Woman,” “Impossible”) but perhaps come alive most vividly on the more exotic stops of their genre-hopping. “Jump Hi” (featuring a glorious Nina Simone sample) is a freewheeling hip-hop-flavored nu-soul jam, and the sensual “Where Do We Go” is irresistible 21st-century disco, while “Little Dreamer” lowers the lights and allows Hervey’s voice the chance to really show off.