In 2014, Morgan Kibby released her first album under the name White Sea, In Cold Blood. Darkly cinematic, it's a feast of bombastic '80s synthesizers and unabashedly massive pop choruses awash in sinister, sumptuous goth atmosphere. At times, it teeters precariously on the edge of full-blown melodrama, but Kibby's commanding vocal presence and ear for infectious melodies reel in her more excessive tendencies. There's no better example of this balancing act than "Warsaw," with lyrics so theatrically macabre they would be almost laughable if not for Kibby's fearless, imposing delivery (along with inspired touches like the incongruously bouncy girl-group-style opening harmonies).

Since the middle of last year, rather than working from within an album-oriented mindset, Kibby has been releasing sporadic stand-alone singles. This arrangement is seemingly well-matched to her creative process, considering every song has been equal to or better than the last. She's released six to date, beginning with "Stay Young, Get Stoned," whose anthemic chorus could easily soundtrack a montage of youthful rebellion in the contemporary equivalent of a John Hughes film: "People say it's time for growing up/All I want to do/Get lost in the smoke/Stay young, get stoned." Meanwhile, the most recent installment, "Secret," is a lush electronic ballad that might swell softly in the background of a more somber scene in the same film.

It's nearly impossible to pick a favorite, but my current biggest contender is "Bloodline," which was released in April. Nearly every White Sea song begs from the first listen to be passionately sung along to, but this one especially does with its intensely desperate tongue-twister of a chorus. "I know we'll love again/I know we'll love again/And when my lover loves again, I'll follow," Kibby wails over a deceptively simple drum and piano melody. Occasionally supplemented by atmospheric guitar and shimmering synth flourishes, it is looped and manipulated to sound like something much vaster and more complex. At its core, "Bloodline" is already a tightly-written pop song, but Kibby's glossy yet mysterious production gives it a brooding edge, turning it into four minutes of total aural bliss.

As a whole, the themes in these songs are more universal than those on In Cold Blood, the hooks somehow even more earth-shaking, but their anchoring aspect remains Kibby's singular, versatile voice and her ever-increasing skill as a composer and producer. She knows precisely when to blow everything up and when to hold back, when to add a layer and when to take one away, a nuanced approach that allows her songs to transcend mere '80s pastiche and become pieces simultaneously modern and timeless.