There's nothing remotely "small" about the music from Danish indie art-pop band Efterklang. With a combination of electronics and grand choral passages, ambient rhythms gliding beneath symphonic Sigur Ros-ish melodies, the Copenhagen quartet whose name translates as "reverberation" reached a critical apex in 2007 with their audacious second studio album Parades. What could have become a dreary exercise in pompous artsy treacle became, instead, an impressive and accessible work hailed as "richly rewarding" (Uncut), "gloriously endearing" (The Wire) and "both restrained and wildly dramatic, gently touching and warmly enveloping" (Stylus). This was big, serious stuff but we found Efterklang to be a band with something interesting to say -- furrowed brows can still deliver some understated thrills.

New self-produced album Magic Chairs, arriving February 23 and their first for the 4AD label, is arguably even more ambitious in scope and execution. Lead track "Modern Drift" builds on a repeating Philip Glass-like piano/electronics bed and progressive time signatures, creating dramatic tension that's tempered by Casper Clausen's staccato vocals and the sweeping, grand orchestrations. "Alike" fuses offbeat programmed rhythms to a tapestry of horns, synths and jangling guitar lines for an effect that is oddly soothing and stimulating at the same time. Like any cerebral endeavor, Magic Chairs requires and open mind and an adventurous spirit -- but for those looking for something inventive and just plain different we recommend taking the plunge.

Myspace  Artist Site

Efterklang - "Morming Drift" (from the album Magic Chairs)

Efterklang - "Alike" (from the album Morning Chairs)

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We've followed the rise of Brooklyn's April Smith & The Great Picture Show for a few years now, catching her striking live performances from Philly to Austin and listening as her sound has evolved from hearty and hooky indie rock to a more distinctive theatrical mix of sassy and swinging retro pop, raggedy ragtime and what April calls "vocally-driven-cinemelodic rock". With a voice that swoops and soars with reckless but pitch perfect abandon, Smith transcends contemporary borders with a jaunty beat, carnival organ, and jangling guitar edge melded to a daring vocal intensity. Think a feminine Gene Pitney meeting Tom Waits at a honky-tonk cabaret.

 Songs for a Sinking Ship, arriving February 23, is light years beyond Smith's promising '05 debut with a maturity and focused musical vision that has come together in a style that's all her own. Lead track "Colors" sums up in under 3 minutes what's at work (and play) here: a sharply etched, classic-styled melody, bouncy rock beat and a voice that struts and saunters. And did we mention the warbly kazoo-ish solo? “When things sound too perfect, it’s too contrived for me," says the diminutive Smith. "You need a little dirt, a little f---up that puts you in that moment.” Recommended.

Myspace  Artist Site

April Smith - "Colors" (demo from the album Songs For A Sinking Ship)

April Smith - "Terrible Things" (demo from the album Songs For A Sinking Ship)

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Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter Holly Miranda may appear to be something of a an edgy indie-pop newcomer, but the release of her debut full-length, The Magician's Private Library (XL, February 23) is actually the culmination of more that a decade's worth of writing and performing. Most recently the frontwoman for The Jealous Girlfriends, Miranda released a solo EP Sleep On Fire last year, which she describes as "pretty homemade", sparking a steady buzz from blogosphere cred gatekeepers, a shout out from Kanye West and production for her new project from Dave Sitek (TV On the Radio).

Full of shadowy, brooding and atmospheric songs that recall Feist, Portishead and Bat For Lashes, The Magician's Private Library tempers lush, electronic beds with serrated shards of minor key guitar and violin shadings, insistent beats, loping bass runs and vocals that are often multi-tracked in harmonies that intentionally never seem to quite match up. The effect is an incongruous fusion of gleaming, richly textured instrumentation, turned askew and distorted, and melodies that glide by with just an occasional bump in the dark. Lead track "Waves" is a glimmering, slow motion 3am dreamscape of electronic mosaics, Miranda's voice a mix of cool nonchalance with a glint of menace, a Valentine wrapped in barbed wire. Recommended.

Myspace   Artist Site

Holly Miranda - "Waves" (from the album The Magician's Private Library)

Holly Miranda - "No One Just In" (from the album The Magician's Private Library)

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Chicago-raised Andrew Belle first came on our radar as a 10% share of this year's Ten Out of Tenn tour, a wonderful and uniformly excellent, ever-changing collaborative mix of mostly Nashville-based singer/songwriters. Hearing his music it comes as no surprise that in high school Belle often escaped to his bedroom to revel in what he calls the "meaningful pop music" of the time: the melodic rock of Counting Crows, Verve Pipe and Third Eye Blind. Wondering "maybe I can do this someday", Belle began to write and then perform his own songs. Now after logging hundreds of shows on his own, Belle is following up on the promise of his recent 5-track EP All The Pretty Lights with with his debut full length The Ladder.

Even with the success of his shows, it's clear that Belle's bright, densely layered songs are meant for a grander production scale onstage, more Fray meets Coldplay than solo personal introspection. First track from Ladders, "Static Waves" (featuring TOT tour cohort Katie Herzig) is a scarily infectious gem of staggered rhythms and detailed construction with an ear candy hook of monumental proportions. We're guessing that Ladder will also up the ante with some more muscular pop/rock on display via the Lights EP, where the arena-sized guitar riffs and anthemic choruses of tracks like "Replace Me" and "In Your Sleep" add some welcome heft.

Myspace  Artist Site

Andrew Belle - Static Waves (w/ Katie Herzig) (from the album Ladders)

Andrew Belle - "All The Pretty Lights" (from the EP All The Pretty Lights)

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Enduring a devastating fire that claimed his home and all of his recording masters, turning forty and witnessing the birth of his first child, SoCal in-demand songwriter and producer Butch Walker has pretty much had his share of life-changing events in the past couple of years. So when it came to laying down tracks for his new February 23 album I Liked You Better When You Had No Heart, Walker decided to keep things simple and direct. Feeling his creative batteries charged touring with his backing band The Black Widows, he decided to keep things rolling. "We literally went into the studio the day after our tour ended," says Walker. "So the wheels were greased."

New project keeps the odd musical dichotomy at the heart of Walker's music gloriously intact: an intriguing genre mashup that touches 70's glam rock and English pop of ELO to T-Rex as well as the sweet twang and dusty kick of honest, roadhouse alt-country music by artists such as Kris Kristofferson and Gram Parsons. Alongside writing partner Michael Trent, Walker crafts songs that have that timeless quality that spans generations of influences and styles, a specialty that has placed him as a go-to songwriting clutch hitter in collaborations with artists as diverse as Pink, Avril Lavigne, Weezer, Pete Yorn and Fall Out Boy. Update: Walker's version of Taylor Swift's "You Belong To Me" has become a viral sensation (and Grammy performance standout with Stevie Nicks) and will be available as a free download with the purchase of the new album. Video after the jump. Recommended.

Myspace  Artist Site

Butch Walker - "Trash Day" (from I Like It Better When You Had No Heart)

Butch Walker - "You Belong With Me" (Taylor Swift cover)

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Boston based new-traditionalist "string band" Joy Kills Sorrow bridges contemporary folk with a diverse pallet of music influences on their sophomore February 23 album Darkness Sure Becomes This City (Signature Sounds). Since their critically acclaimed debut in 2007, the "Yankee" Americana quintet has gone through some personnel changes, most notably the addition of Canadian folkie Emma Beaton as lead vocalist following the departure of promising solo artist Heather Masse. What hasn't changed is the quality of Joy Kills Sorrow's acoustic Americana music. A fascinating hybrid of bluegrass, folk and a touch of Celtic, Darkness boasts exceptional playing, memorable songs and an attitude bent on mixing things up in unexpected ways.

Guitar, mandolin, banjo and double bass form the instrumental foundation for songs such as the sweetly turned out "You Will Change Me" and delicately layered "Kill My Sorrow", proof that a percussionless outfit such as this can still make things move rhythmically. Minus the southern twang that often accompanies this style of music and with Joy Kills Sorrow's embrace of modern folk song structures, the new project plays out almost like a modern, soft-spoken indie pop band playing traditional bluegrass instruments instead of plugging in. In many respects, you don't get much more "alternative" than this. Recommended.

Myspace  Artist Site

Joy Kills Sorrow - "Kill My Sorrow" (from the album Darkness Sure Becomes This City)

Joy Kills Sorrow - "Books" (from the album Darkness Sure Becomes This City)

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Lush, aspiring and larger-than-life art-pop -- with the necessary grand themes to go along -- has been the acclaimed stock in trade for Shearwater, the Austin, TX band led creatively by Jonathan Meiburg (ex-Okkervill River). Over a pair of extraordinary, universally praised albums - '08's Rook, '06's Palo Santo - Meiburg and band fashion songs of epic proportions, filled with majestic sounds and insanely beautiful nuance. The music is often as challenging as it is rewarding -- as most great album are -- with Meiburg's vocals moving from fragile falsetto to ardent intensity as the music builds and recedes, from turbulence to calm, behind him. It's a rarity when music can come across as both magnificent and understated, but Shearwater often finds compelling drama in the quietest of places.

New album The Golden Archipelago (February 23, Matador) once again explores big-canvased themes, this time focusing on the idea of islands from both a natural, physical state -- and Meiburg's own globe-trotting recollections and historical studies -- along with the associated inherent isolation. Tracks such as the resplendant "Runners of the Sun", furiously detailed "Black Eyes" and achingly supple "God Made Me" all fit together like pieces of a meticulously assembled puzzle, each adding its own sophisticated segment...and an homage to the fading art-form known as the "album." Highly recommended.

Shearwater - "Castaways" (from the album The Golden Archipelago)

Shearwater - Album Sampler (of The Golden Archipelago)

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There's a simpler new efficiency to the third album from Swedish indie alt/popsters Shout Out Louds, an indication coming directly from the title: Work (Merge). Part of it is attitude, peeling away any unnecessary pop clutter or bells and whistles. Part of it is a maturity and confidence that's evident in the new songs from chief creator and front man Adam Olenius, composed while holed up in his Aussie girlfriend's apartment with just a guitar, a small keyboard and his laptop. And part of it is in the choice of producer: Seattle indie mainstay Phil Ek (Fleet Foxes, The Shins) -- a man known for keeping it real and keeping it all about the basics, primarily with an organic "live in the studio" feel. And yes, in case you were wondering, it does, indeed, work. And well.

Lead tracks -- the vigorous, impellent "Fall Hard" and edge-meets-hook impact of "Walls" -- reinforce this new frill-resistant Work ethic. Whatever decorative, orchestral and "space"-filling trappings that may have been employed with the band's 07 album Our Ill Wills have been pretty much eliminated and the songs have a refreshingly blunt urgency. "The whole idea for this record...was to make a more stripped down record, to lose the dramatic sound we had on the second one," Olenius reflects. "We wanted to be more relaxed in what we do." Recommended. Videos after the jump...

Shout Out Louds - "Walls" (from the album Work)

Shout Out Louds - "Fall Hard" (from the album Work)

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Fans of Eef Barzelay and his unfortunately christened band Clem Snide got a long awaited gift last year with the release of Hungry Bird, the oft-delayed album that was subject to the plagues of internal creative strife and personnel disarray. After some promising solo projects, Barzelay decided to regroup Clem Snide, wrapped up Hungry Bird for '09 release, toured with his cohorts and set out to continue the Snide-ly legacy. To our great delectation, twelve fresh new slices of The Meat of Life arrive February 23 via the 429 label, clearly the result of a renewed and reinvigorated creative process from Barzelay (who describes his songs as "confrontational") and backing members Brendan Fitzpatrick (bass, organ) and Ben Martin (drums).

As with all Snide works dating back well over a decade, Meat boasts all the signature traits that have characterized their sound and style: literate wordplay, unpredictable time signatures and off-kilter melodies all laid out with ambitious scope balanced with a raw, not-quite-ragged directness. The skittering indie-pop charms of "Denise" and sharp-cornered "I Got High" share space with the delicate sensitivity of "Nothing Much to Show of It", ebullient harmonies at play with a lovely string arrangement. Recommended.

Myspace  Artist Site  429 Records Page

Clem Snide - "Denise" (from the album The Meat of Life)

Clem Snide - "With Nothing Much to Show of It" (from the album The Meat of Life)

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After nearly twenty years of creating some of the most acclaimed and enduring modern folk of our time, singer/songwriter Carrie Newcomer says she's "peeled back another musical and emotional layer" on her forthcoming February 23 album Before and After (Rounder), adding that "there is something unguarded and naked about this album." As with her fine 2008 album Geography of Light, Newcomer's penchant for opulent production, impeccable ear for melody and warm, inviting vocal style make Before and After a sterling example of contemporary adult songwriting. You won't find much out of place here -- but you'll also marvel at the detailed craftsmanship in each song, effortless if you weren't aware of the innate artisan-like skill at work in each detail.

As with her fellow musical travelers Mary Chapin Carpenter (who guests here), Rosanne Cash and Alison Krauss, Newcomer has honed her own particular style to perfection, comfortable in her own musical and emotional skin, spiritual observations and musical influences: from rootsy Appalachian instrumentation to lovely, classic folk/pop melodies. We're particularly fond of the dark undertow at work in the hazy shadows of "Coy Dogs" and the warm pulse beating in the lovely "Hush." "The joy and challenge in creating this album was endeavoring to be fearlessly uncluttered and subtle," observes Newcomer. We think she's succeeded beautifully. Recommended.

Myspace Artist Site

Carrie Newcomer - Before and After sampler ("Coy Dogs", "Before and After", "Ghost Train", "Hush")

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Alkaline Trio - This Addiction (Rock/Punk)

Andrew McKenna Lee - Gravity and Air (Classical/Experimental/Guitar)

Andrew W.K. - Close Calls With Brick Walls/Mother of Mankind (Rock)

Balmorhea - Constellations (Alt/Folk/Ambient/Neo-Classical)*

Barney Bentall - Inside Passage (Rock/Roots/Pop/Americana)

Brian Jonestown Massacre - Who Killed Sgt. Pepper? (Rock/Alt)*

Butch Walker and the Black Widows - I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart (Pop/Rock)*

Carolina Chocolate Drops - Genuine Negro Jig (Americana/Bluegrass/Folk)*

Carolyn Leonhart and Wayne Escoffery - Tides of Yesterday (Jazz/Vocal)*

Carrie Newcomer - Before & After (Folk/Pop)*

Claire Voyant - Claire Voyant (Pop/Electronica)

Clem Snide - The Meat of Life (Pop/Folk/Alt)*

Daniel Merriweather - Love & War (Pop/Soul)*

David Byrne and Fatboy Slim - Here Lies Love (Pop/Rock/Dance)*

Deadstring Brothers - Sao Paulo (Country/Rock/Blues)*

Efterklang - Magic Chairs (Pop/Alt/Indie)*

Holly Miranda - The Magician's Private Library (Alt/Pop)*

Irish Tenors - Ireland (Celtic/Vocal/Classical)

Jack Rose - Luck In the Valley (Acoustic/Blues/Folk/Guitar Instrumental)*

Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me (Pop/Alt/Neo-Folk)*

John Ellis and Double Wide - Puppet Mischief (Jazz/Pop/R+B/Instrumental)*

Johnny Cash - American VI: Ain't No Grave (Country)

Josh Thompson - Way Out Here (Country/Pop)

Josh Williams - Down Home (Bluegrass)

Joy Kills Sorrow - Darkness Sure Becomes This City (Bluegrass/Acoustic/Folk)*

Julian Cope - Peggy Suicide (Deluxe 2-CD Edition) (Rock/Pop)

Lucky Peterson - Heart of Pain (Blues)

Mark Whitfield - Songs of Wonder (Jazz/Guitar/R+B)

Moreland and Arbuckle - Flood (Blues/Rock/Roots)

Past Lives - Tapestry of Webs (Alt/Pop/Indie/Rock)

Razia Said - Zebu Nation (Afro-Beat, Folk, International)

Rocky Votolato - True Devotion (Pop/Folk)*

Sarah Buxton - Sarah Buxton (Country/Pop)

Shearwater - Golden Archipelago (Indie/Art-Rock)*

Shout Out Louds - Work (Rock/Pop)*

Sound of Days - The Quiet Night (Rock/Alt)

The Rocket Summer - Of Men & Angels (Pop/Rock)

Veil Veil Vanish - Change In the Neon Light (New Wave/Electronica/Alt)

Xiu Xiu - Dear God I Hate Myself (Alt/Folk/Pop/Indie)