CD Reviews: Nada Surf gets 'Lucky,' Mountain Goats have 'Pride'

‘LUCKY’

Nada Surf (Barsuk)

Grade: A

Nada Surf may still be best known for its 1996 hit “Popular,” but the band has long since gone on to far better, subtler things. Lucky picks up where 2005’s “The Weight Is a Gift” left off, excelling at Beatles- and Byrds-derived, hypnotically chiming pop-rock that washes over you in contemplative waves. The New York trio fronted by Matthew Paws shares many of the power-pop tendencies of the Fountains of Wayne, but is free of the jokiness that began to curdle on FoW’s “Traffic” and “Weather.” Instead, Nada Surf specializes in conjuring melancholy moods and then expertly employing yearning melodies to rise above the fray. “Trying to remember when I could fix anything with sound,” Paws sings, in “Beautiful Beat” searching for that ideal musical elixir. Lucky sounds like it might do the trick.

— Dan DeLuca, Philadelphia Inquirer

‘THE RISE & FALL OF RUBY WOO’

The Puppini Sisters (Verve)

Grade: B

Unabashedly retro, the Puppini Sisters look back to the Andrews Sisters for their swinging, close harmonies and their glamorous 1940s fashion sense.

“The Rise & Fall of Ruby Woo,” their second album, wisely avoids predictable vintage classics — “It Don’t Mean a Thing [If It Ain’t Got That Swing]” excepted — in favor of solid, amusing originals and inspired covers. The Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian” and Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love” become toe-tapping swing sensations, with the ladies’ exuberant voices riding acoustic bass lines; Barry Manilow’s “Could It Be Magic” turns into a dreamy reverie.

Like their fellow Brits the Pipettes, the Puppini Sisters (Marcella Puppini, Kate Mullins and Stephanie O’Brien) take a concept that could be played for irony and camp and treat it with enough loving sincerity and genuine enthusiasm to make it infectious. And the Puppinis are better singers.

— Steve Klinge, Philadelphia Inquirer

‘HERETIC PRIDE’

The Mountain Goats (4AD)

Grade: A

John Darnielle’s Mountain Goats belongs to a coterie of literate indie-rockers that includes the Decemberists, the Hold Steady and Okkervil River, bands that relish character and narrative and a well-turned phrase as much as they do a catchy melody. The prolific Darnielle started releasing lo-fi cassette albums in the early ’90s, and he continues to refine his craft on “Heretic Pride.”

While not as thematically focused as 2005’s superb “The Sunset Tree,” these 13 songs dwell on tales of emotional turmoil and contain recurring images of blood. “Lovecraft in Brooklyn” rides a raw, electric riff, but most of “Heretic Pride” is quietly beautiful, as Darnielle’s acoustic strumming and Erik Friedlander’s mournful cello mask captivating, precise stories of life during wartime and murdered reggae stars, of sexual misunderstandings and mismatched lovers.

— Steve Klinge, Philadelphia Inquirer

‘THE HEAVY CIRCLES’

The Heavy Circles (Dynamite Child)

Grade: B

Who knew recording music with your stepmother could be so fun?

Granted, this is no ordinary family.

Edie Brickell, the sometime New Bohemian and full-time wife of Paul Simon, has joined Simon’s 35-year-old son Harper Simon to form the new duo The Heavy Circles, and with a host of guests, they have created an eclectic and enjoyable self-titled album.

At 41, Brickell is actually a lot closer in age to Harper than she is to her husband, the 66-year-old Paul.

But none of that matters on “The Heavy Circles.” This isn’t a vanity project or some halfhearted home recording set to a backing track.

“The Heavy Circles” is a moody, sometimes haunting, gripping album full of atmospheric songs that are richly textured and well-produced. Kudos go to Harper Simon for handling that task along with Bryce Goggin, who also produced Brickell’s last disc with the New Bohemians.

Brickell again turns in a nuanced and seductive vocals, sharing the songwriting credits with Simon. “Henri” and “Wait and Wait” are standouts, revealing themselves in unexpected ways upon multiple listens.

— Scott Bauer, Associated Press

‘FREE SOMEHOW’

Widespread Panic

(Widespread Records)

Grade: C+

“Free Somehow” is the 10th studio recording from improvisational rockers Widespread Panic, though it’s the first to feature songs written with guitarist Jimmy Herring. Herring took over when George McConnell — himself a replacement for founding member Michael Houser, who lost his life to pancreatic cancer in 2002 — abruptly left the band in 2006. It’s the second album produced by Terry Manning after recording almost exclusively with John Keane the band’s entire career.

It’s important to note these changes, because each has had a pronounced effect on the band’s sound. Herring brings a fluid style of play absent in performance and in studio recordings since Houser’s passing. Manning adds a dense rock aesthetic, which the band has lacked, resulting in tracks such as the fast-paced, thunderous opener, “Boom, Boom, Boom,” and “Wake of the Flood,” the heaviest song the band has written (both lyrically and musically) in its 22-year history. Herring’s presence is heard on sinewy, atmospheric songs such as “Three Candles,” the acoustic, string laden “Her Dance Needs No Body” and the elegant country of the title track.

Although “Free Somehow” doesn’t reach the energy level of Widespread Panic’s best live performances, with Herring in place, the band has certainly rediscovered its musical roots.

— Bill Clifford, Hartford Courant

‘DISTRICT LINE’

Bob Mould (Anti)

Grade: B

As a sampler of Bob Mould’s eventful quarter-century in music, you could do worse than “District Line,” his seventh album under his own name.

Here, Mould revisits familiar themes (betrayal, the ravages of time) as well as the cello-assisted introspection of his 1989 solo debut, “Workbook,” the crunching 1990s power-pop of Sugar and the dance tracks of his recent partnership with electro-wizard Richard Morel.

Although he occasionally works up a good head of steam, Mould never attempts the full-frontal punk assault of his classic sides with Husker Du, which is unsurprising.

The versatility displayed — particularly on “Shelter,” a warm bubble bath of club froth — might frustrate some fans, especially since it’s clear Mould could make another great Sugar-style rock record any times he chooses. (Check the one-two punch of “Stupid Now” and “Who Needs to Dream” for proof.)

Yet the thread connecting all 10 songs is the quality of Mould’s songwriting, whatever the genre. He can still craft melodies that are simultaneously anthemic and wounded, providing his yearning rasp the surface it needs to spark into brilliance, just as it’s done since the Du’s bittersweet 1985 single “Makes No Sense at All.”

Happily, Mould and his music make as much sense as ever.

— Dan LeRoy, Hartford Courant

‘FLOCK’

Bell X1 (Yep Roc)

Grade: B

It’s doubtful the American release of Irish band Bell X1’s “Flock” will generate as much interest here as it did in its homeland, but it’s likely to stir devotion among those who do happen upon it.

“Flock” is bolstered by a solid foundation of poignancy and artful layers of instrumentation, from muted jazz intonations to fragments of Gothic rock. And lead vocalist Paul Noonan caps off the sound with an emotional, yet mostly restrained, delivery.

The release feels familiar — heavy on the Radiohead, but scores of other acts likewise come to mind — yet the weight of the melancholy melodies makes it feel important, too.

Also, although Noonan broods, he’s rarely morbidly morose: “Flock” has enough energetic and/or wry moments to steer it clear of the kind of humorless self-importance that undermines other serious groups.

Bell X1 drapes its listeners in carefully constructed atmosphere — often with comforting effects, as when Noonan eases into the dreamy, soft-shuffling mix of “Rocky Took a Lover” and when gentle, ghostly backing vocals hold sway against the arcing drama of “Just Like Mr. Benn.” And in the group’s world of part-shimmer, part-subtlety, there’s room for fidgety, off-kilter rock like that of “Flame” and “Bigger Than Me.”

The band’s solid fundamentals and crafty nuance are key to the success of its eclectic endeavors, which sweep from the meditative beauty of “Bad Skin Day” to the romantic fluidity of “Natalie” to the restless edge of “Reacharound.”

“Flock’s” showpiece is its finale, “Lamposts.” Embracing the dark, almost funereal arrangement, Noonan struggles with his mistreatment of a loved one whom he simply can’t release, singing symbolic lines such as, “I’ve been walking you into those lamposts again/But I’d rather do that than let go of your hand.”

— Chuck Campbell, Knoxville News-Sentinel