A decade too late for the original shoegazer movement, L.A.'s
Cerulean land somewhere in between Oxford, England's
Ride and Hershey, PA's
the Ocean Blue on this follow-up to 1999's Skylight. Long on echo-laden atmospherics and inventive guitar-scapes, "Violet" has a pensive, dream-like float that is countered by the aggressively paced rocker "Very Happy With." Balancing soft guitar lines and melodies ("I'll Believe," "I Miss October") against the likeable thump of "Ready," vocalist Rick Bolander's lyrics are poetic and introspective. Alongside his bandmates,
Brighter/Still is ideally suited for disciples of
the Trash Can Sinatras,
the Sundays,
Catherine Wheel, and
Sunny Day Real Estate. ~ John D. Luerssen