Lou Barlow – EMOH

For Sebadoh fans who kept one finger on the skip button in anticipation of the next Lowenstein or Gaffney song, the idea of a Lou Barlow solo album is a revelation. Barlow’s underrated voice sounds great harmonizing with itself on the jaunty “Holding Back the Year,” and the cover of Ratt’s “Round and Round”—though admittedly a gimmick—is better than it has any right to be. Barlow fails to write an indie rock standard, something he usually manages once per album, but EMOH still exceeds expectations.