In the midst of relocating from San Francisco to Brooklyn, indie rock band the Morning Benders parted ways with bassist Tim Or and changed their name to POP ETC. This decision came after the band learned that "bender" had homophobic slang connotations in parts of the U.K. Along with the name change, the move, and the reconfiguration of bandmembers (bandleader Chris Chu stayed on with multi-instrumentalists Julian Harmon and brother Jon Chu), POP ETC took on a radio-ready sound. Their self-titled debut album was released in 2012, with slick production by Andrew Dawson and a collaboration with Danger Mouse. It was followed in 2016 by Souvenir. ~ Fred Thomas