Lights Out

As a rotating group of musicians where even the core members involve themselves in numerous side projects, Bishop Allen take their time getting to their own albums. The 2014 album Lights Out is the long-awaited follow-up to 2009’s Grrr…. In the interim, they’ve uprooted from the overloaded Brooklyn indie scene to the steadily emerging indie burg of Kingston, N.Y., a Hudson River town that’s engaged artists and musicians alike. Justin Rice holds together this ensemble with delicate harmonies providing a richness among the guitars, synths, and active rhythm section. Songs such as “Give It Back,” “Good Talk,” and “Crows” impress with their mix of somber and celebratory. The deliberate contrast makes the material a formidable accomplishment. Rice’s wife, Darbie Nowatka, brings her restrained delivery to “Black Hole,” a gentle tune that resembles Buddy Holly’s "Everyday” in its simple, melodic joy. Among the rotating members hiding in plain view are the psych-folk group Trummors, whose two members (Dave Lerner and Anne Cunningham) also provide background vocals and instrumentation.