“I’m on the phone with Tom Krell (better-known as indie-soul lothario How to Dress Well), and, in response to a question about the influence of top 40 balladry on his work, he’s walking me through a playlist he’s just made. On Krell’s buzzy, sophomore release Total Loss (out this past Tuesday on Acephale Records) tracks radiate with both despair and cautious elation through a haze of mid-90′s R&B. Krell rattles off a few obvious influences including Antony Hegarty, Robbie Basho, Babyface, Kate Bush and Whitney Houston…and then pauses.

“And…’2 Become 1′ by The Spice Girls. It’s such a gorgeous song,” says Krell. “I learned so much about love by listening to that song in middle school.” Read on.