What Another Man Spills

Lambchop defy the rock & roll odds, even those of avant-rock, mainly by being an extraordinary bunch of melody-loving tunesmiths. With an attention to texture that rivals the High Llamas, Lambchop throw in vibraphone, baritone sax, trumpet, a multitude of string instruments, and languid lyrical smarts. What they get is a dazzling, dazed moodscape, slack as a humid afternoon and as Western as one can be in a thick forest of instrumental textures. They twang around a bit--even featuring the crowned king of irony and insight, Vic Chesnutt, on vocals--but more often they weave between sweet melodies and such countrified meditations on immortality as this: "Heaven is a disaster, and you won't get there any faster." Lambchop also interject spooked noise and found sounds among their low-key peeks at passion and anguish. But wait--they also do a dandy cover of Curtis Mayfield's "Give Me Your Love" and thus go an extra mile toward being unparalleled in their sheer power to mix and match so broadly. --Andrew Bartlett