Sunset Rubdown

Sunset Rubdown began as the side project of Wolf Parade keyboardist/vocalist Spencer Krug but has since blossomed into a band whose musical stylings arguably outshine those of its frontman's better-known quintet. Since Wolf Parade's last release in 2005, Sunset Rubdown has already released an EP and two full-length albums, the latest of which is the abstractly titled Random Spirit Lover.

Random Spirit Lover is an ambitious effort of many musical faces. The album can be described as sparse, haunting, maniacal and epic all at once. Krug offers songs that seem cacophonous and meandering on first listen but later reveal themselves as products of a highly controlled form of auditory chaos. Rich tiers of sound are laid down on top of pop-like keyboard melodies with Krug's distinctive vocals and obscure lyrics consistently soaring above the melee.

Nearly all of the 11 songs clock in at five minutes in length, allowing each ample time to tell a unique and diverse tale. There are surely songs with catchy appeal-the heroic "Up on Your Leopard, Upon the End of Your Feral Days" immediately comes to mind-but this is an album best listened to as a whole. Listeners seeking out a carbon copy of Wolf Parade's brand of danceable indie-pop may well be put off by Random Spirit Lover's numerous eccentricities, but for those looking for a new, distinctive take on keyboard-driven rock, giving Sunset Rubdown a listen may be a step in the right direction.