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Album reviews Music

Pick a Piper

PICK A PIPER play Rancho Relaxo on Sunday (March 24) as part of CMF, and the Rivoli on April 13. See listings. Rating: NNNN


It’s often unfair to compare musicians’ new projects to their better-known main gigs, but it’s hard not to when listening to Caribou drummer Brad Weber’s debut album as Pick a Piper. Like Caribou leader Dan Snaith, Weber has a knack for combining electronic and organic elements into dreamy psych-pop that sounds as good on the dance floor as it does through a pair of headphones.

The eight songs float by so airily that it’s easy to miss the complexity lying under the surface. Horns, synths and samples float above soulful vocals by members of Ruby Suns, Born Ruffians and Braids, while dense layers of texture and polyrhythmic percussion give way to beguiling melodies that worm their way into your subconscious.

Top track: All Her Colours

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