Albumin

The bright, mysterious pop of Baltimore’s Celebration reaches full fruition on the pure, bouncy delight of “Tomorrow’s Here Today,” a song written in celebration of the birth of drummer David Bergander’s son. For a band once signed to the gloomy, ethereal 4AD label and currently signed by the Bella Union label (run by the Cocteau Twins’ Simon Raymonde and Robin Guthrie), it’s quite a sign of maturity and unexpected joy. But the Baltimore-based Celebration have been keeping their options light and open for years. Despite the success of their last 4AD album, the spellbinding The Modern Tribute, the band opted to self-release the follow-up, The Electric Tarot: Hello Paradise. Then they rejoined Bella Union for 2014’s Albumin, an album loaded with left turns and adventurous decisions. Katrina Ford’s vocals are up to the instrumental challenges that culminate in the carnivalesque beauty of “Blood in the Brine,” where Tony Drummond’s keyboards and Sean Antanaitis’ guitars drive the ultimate romp. The diversity of songs like “7’sensei,” the bluesy “I Got Sol,” and the big-stage “Chariot” make this their most ambitious album to date.