CREDIT: DAVE HAMILTON
Ajay Bhattacharyya and Amy Kirkpatrick are the duo known as Data Romance. They will be releasing their new album Other on February 19.

I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. An album release cycle from start to finish is an incredibly long process. It can take a while for a band to record and engineer their music to their tastes, certainly, but in truth completing the album is one in a long list of tasks involved in releasing a new album to the public.

In fact, since the process of releasing records from start to finish costs a lot of time and money, releasing new music often can become a challenge for many independent musicians — especially considering how much time and money it takes to be an active touring artist to begin with.

It's been a long wait for Data Romance's new full-length album Other, due at last for release February 19 on Dine Alone Records. It's way too far in advance for the album to have received any published reviews, of course, however I'm personally very excited for its release and had to tell you about it.

Data Romance released their self-titled EP early in 2011, its four songs as diverse in tone and atmosphere as they are strong and emotive. The duo — Victoria—born Ajay Bhattacharyya and Amy Kirkpatrick — made a strong impression on audiences after the release, touring to generate interest in a full-length debut. They've spent the time in between then and now working on their music, growing their sound and sharing progress along the way through social media.

While it delves into dark places, their music exhibits a wealth of tonal shades that contrasts ironically with their clean, minimal image. Bhattacharyya's compositions are three-dimensional, as demonstrated in one song "Others" — the music breathes and rolls under Kirkpatrick's gentle vocals, its ability to captivate is highly indicative of the remaining album ahead.

Data Romance surely benefits as the sum of its parts — Bhattacharyya and Kirkpatrick each bring immense talent to the table. Kirkpatrick has the delivery and vocal purity of a bred pop star, tenderly painting lyrics over the shifting canvas that she and Bhattacharyya have engineered. One moment she is Amy Millan, stoic and unapologetically love worn, and the next she is Annie Lennox, lamenting and yearning.

On stage the connection becomes clear; Bhattacharyya intently focused on his station, sculpting out sound to accompany Kirkpatrick, singing with the kind of raw talent and earnest that pop stars haven't employed since the diva era ended.

The coming album Other features recent singles "She's Been High" and "Caves" among its new offerings. Information is scarce online at the moment but visit dataromance.com or follow @dataromance on Twitter for news as the release approaches — my fingers are crossed for a tour soon.

And for more of the latest in music news, views and even personal recommendations, consider following this column on Twitter @fsu_bobbyisms. Listen to something new sometime, I'm out of words.