Less than a year after serene debut EP Fort Walnut, San Marcos’ Silver Pines keep the embers burning eloquently with Forces, a masterfully paced seven-song collection of translucent psych-folk, led by the haunting, amber cull of vocalist Stefanie Franciotti and hand-numbered at 250 copies. There’s more organ drone added to the narcotic haze this time around, with dusty instrumentals “Polar Bear” and “Fortress of Daughters” like lantern-lit voyages to Mazzy Star. Austin’s Lemurs get a little help from their local friends on Million Little Bits. The brooding New Wave stomp of opener “Nina” lilts with a Pink Nasty harmony, while standout “Blackspot,” featuring Michael Kingcaid of What Made Milwaukee Famous and Belaire’s Cari Palazzolo, hits an imaginative sweet spot between its two collaborators. As a whole, the EP’s a bit disappointing, if only for its brevity. Same goes for the sophomore outing from the Laughing, Jungle, whose trademark elements – quivering vocals, scratchy guitars, horns, Afrobeat percussion – struggle to find an adequate balance, save for closer “Paradise.” It’s a stroke of brilliance compared to the compact electro-trash debut from Suncopters, Sex Panda, which takes all of the wrong cues from the Butthole Surfers’ club makeover Weird Revolution and tacks on two remixes for good measure.
*Oops! The following correction ran in the October 10, 2008 issue: The deEP end section of “Texas Platters,” Music, Sept. 26, reversed band and disc title on the Suncopters’ Sex Panda EP. The Chronicle regrets the dyslexia.
This article appears in September 26 • 2008.