Bands Like Men I Trust: Records to Check Out Next
Men I Trust have a sound that’s easy to recognize and surprisingly hard to duplicate. The soft vocals, prominent bass, clean guitar, subtle funk, and hazy production all fit together in a way that feels relaxed without becoming background music.
If that combination is what keeps bringing you back to them, these records hit some of the same spots without sounding like copies.
TOPS are one of the easiest bands to recommend to a Men I Trust fan. They share the same Montreal indie-pop orbit and a similar fondness for understated vocals, clean guitar, warm keyboards, and basslines that carry more of the song than you might notice on the first listen.
Picture You Staring is a particularly good entry point. It’s smooth, melodic, slightly strange, and full of songs that reveal themselves slowly instead of going for an immediate payoff.
If you like the quieter, groovier side of Men I Trust, start here.
Another Tops release we're fond of is TOPS – Empty Seats EP
The basic appeal of TOPS and condenses it into a smaller package. The arrangements stay light, the melodies are immediate without feeling obvious, and there’s plenty of space in the songs. It’s polished indie pop, but it never feels overly cleaned up.
Ghostly Kisses pull the comparison toward the dreamier and more atmospheric side.
Darkroom is built around airy vocals, electronic textures, and slow-moving arrangements that feel especially suited to late-night listening. There’s less emphasis on funk and more on mood, but the same patient approach is there. If your favorite Men I Trust tracks are the ones that feel like they’re floating, this is one to grab.
Ghostly Kisses – Heaven, Wait LP
Heaven, Wait leans even further into spacious dream pop than Men I Trust, but the connection is strong.
The songs are quiet without being empty, with soft electronic production and vocals that sit inside the music instead of on top of it. It’s darker and more cinematic, but the two make sense on the same shelf. This is probably the strongest choice here for anyone who comes to Men I Trust primarily for atmosphere.
Melt lands in the hazier indie-pop section of this list. There’s a bedroom-pop intimacy to it, but the production has enough depth as well. Slow songs, leaving plenty of room for texture and melody. Not for Radio is María Zardoya, who is the lead singer and songwriter of the indie-pop band The Marías. This effort is a bit darker, but a good next step if you want something mellow, modern, and a little more washed out around the edges.
Strongboi – “Be Mine / Special” 7"
Strongboi push things toward funk, soul, and stripped-down indie pop. The bass sits right up front, the arrangements are loose, and there’s a little more oddness in the edges than you get from the slicker records on this list. That makes them a particularly good fit for listeners who think the rhythm section is the best part of Men I Trust. This 2 song 7" is a short introduction, but it makes the point quickly.
Where to Start
If you want the closest overall match, go with TOPS. For something dreamier, try Ghostly Kisses. And if the basslines and groove are what you like most about Men I Trust, don’t skip Strongboi.
None of these records are trying to be Men I Trust. That’s what makes them worth hearing.
