okkervil river

After finding their folky sound in 2007's well-received Stage Names, Okkervil River continue telling their beautifully rumble-tumble stories with The Stand Ins. Although they take some debatable creative leaps (see the seemingly pointless interludes), the vibrant guitars and refreshingly homegrown lyrics are still everywhere you'd want them to be.

The bouncy bassline and jangling guitars of "Lost Coastlines" clashes with the track's dark, dragging vocals, which may confuse on a first pass and bore on the second. However, "Singer Songwriter's" story of a privileged Fitzgeraldian hero and her lack of anything but fine tastes compels listeners to pay attention to lead singer Will Sheff's lyrics, where the true charm of the band resides.

In "On Tour With Zykos," we get a glimpse into the artist's life: coming home tired, facing expectations of genius, but ultimately settling for watching a made-for-TV movie. In keeping with the personal tone, "Calling And Not Calling My Ex" is a track where the narrator expresses his regrets of breaking up with a girl he now sees on TV and in magazines. Sheff laments, "God knows I'm feeling really stupid now for ever having said 'goodbye.'"

Musically, "Blue Tulips" soars just as high as the band's older, catchier tunes "The President's Dead" and "Unless It Kicks," but shows a maturity in its instrumental complexity and majesty. It's nothing too innovative, but the idea comes across. "Pop Lie," a song that critiques the fake pop-music industry and its manufactured dreams, is the upbeat, fast-paced anomaly of the album.

Throughout The Stand Ins, we see a band of self-proclaimed "professional failures" dealing with issues of fame and the process and privilege of creating art. Even after their first taste of critical acclaim, it's safe to say Okkervil River have got their heads on pretty straight.