There's no way Dallas Good could have seen his death coming, as the singer and guitarist of The Sadies was diagnosed only days before passing away from a heart condition in February 2022—months after the band's 11th studio release was finished. But Colder Streams ended up being a truly haunted record, in the most beautiful way. "Dearest departed/ Oh, where have you gone … the circle is broken," goes a verse of "Message to Belial," drenched in surf-tinged psychedelia. Dallas and brother Travis' harmonies, as always, are otherworldly, and especially on the gothic "More Alone," so vividly alive with white-hot guitar: "I pay my respects to a close friend I lost yesterday ... It hurts me to think about what could have been … He died all alone/ But he was never alone." Produced by Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry, the song collection is a gorgeous goodbye to the solid four-piece lineup and their cosmic Americana by way of Canada—naturalistically blending country, folk, surf and psychedelic garage as if they were always meant to go together. Started nearly 30 years ago in Toronto, the band has always embraced family, both blood and an expansive, interconnected network of collaborators that includes Neko Case, Kurt Vile, Jon Langford and the Mekons, John Doe and Jon Spencer. The latter guests here on "No One's Listening," a tightly coiled weather system of a song: organ howling like the wind, guitar unleashed like lightning, bass like rumbling thunder. Punnily named, "All the Good"—with its cowpoke rhythm and extra-fine guitar work—turns up the twang as the brothers' mom joins on backing vocals and their dad (a member of the Canadian country-folk legends the Good Brothers) on autoharp. And the siblings sound transcendental on "Ginger Moon," a tumult of surf drums and guitar sweetened with Everly-esque harmonies, as well as the simple campfire clarity of "You Should Be Worried." "So Far for So Few" finds the band trying out drifter-style canyon country, while "Better Yet" is rip-roaring fierce with its punk-rock drums and garage-psych vibes that mellow into a slow burn. The grand, cinematic landscape of "End Credits" closes it all out, its rhythm absolutely crushing. It's one hell of a way to be played off of the world. © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz