Slimming down from a quintet to a quartet for their second release, Delicate Cutters deliver a beautifully nuanced album in Some Creatures. Featuring guitar, fiddle, bass, and drums, the band works the dynamics extremely well here, especially on the brooding standouts “Los Angeles,” “Be Sweet,” “Let’s Be Free,” and “Lovers Don’t Leap,” which have a slow-burning intensity and melancholy mood. This feeling is heightened by the haunting vocals and intimate, thinly veiled confessional lyrics of guitarist/singer Janet Simpson, whose voice meshes sweetly with Kevin Nicholson’s fiddle flourishes. The rhythm section works with subtle grace, bending with the melodies and playing off the tension created by the fiddle. The midtempo “Me and the Birds,” “Warm Beer and Sympathy,” and “May as Well” provide an upbeat contrast that adds balance to the album. Some Creatures is an enjoyable collection of sophisticated, folk-influenced pop.