The Rosebuds: Life Like

Unassumingly excellent moonlight romps under the milky-way night

Having delved into glossier synth-pop on Night of The Furies, The Rosebuds have returned with guitars cranked, reverb in the mix and a warmth and twirl in their arrangements that recall The Church. “Cape Fear” glides by like a silenced black motorcycle, while “Border Guards” is like The National without as much languid self-interest. There’s a haunting quality to these songs that belies the album’s casual four-track origins, the presumably acoustic skeletons cloaked in shades of silky texture enhanced by stacked vocals and subtle-but-driving drumming. “In the Backyard” crowns the album with a lush open-sky guitar part and moody lyrics. It’s heady and magical stuff.

Listen to tracks from Life Like on The Rosebud's MySpace page.