Threace

This Chicago-based instrumental four-piece finds ways to show off its chops without being flashy about it. Restraint has been key in the past, and it’s even more present on Threace: a five-track collection that wanders into psych-funk-jazz-Krautrock without slavishly following any genre. The opening opus, “Sweaty Fingers," breaks into a Black Sabbath–like guitar run that first appears as a seemingly random riff before dominating the fifth minute of the jam, which resolves into a solitary line for most of its remaining time. Cooper Crain moves from guitar to organ, while guitarist Jeremy Freeze, bassist Dan Browning, and drummer Rex McMurry remain stationed at their instruments. “Silver Headband” initially lulls into a hypnotic groove before making heavier use of an electric guitar that sounds like it walked in from a late-'60s English blues-rock album or from hanging out with Humble Pie. “Shikaakwa” works with repetitive forms. “Arrow’s Myth” throws funk guitars and ‘70s Fender Rhodes keys into a thick, tough rhythm.