Swim

The second release by the Whispertown 2000 signals the full arrival of a fresh new band on the indie-folk scene. Their sound, especially the vocals of lead singer and guitarist Morgan Nagler, is rough and raw (as if the album had been recorded live in big living room) and the songs are simple and clean, featuring acoustic and electric guitar, bass, drums, and some keyboards. The band really shines when Nagler and Vanessa Corbala harmonize on gems like "Old Times," "Atlantis," and the rollicking "Lock and Key," the latter of which features a breakdown that’s surprisingly redolent of a number from Grease. There are also backing vocals by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings but that’s not as noteworthy as the fact that the Whispertown 2000 is also the first outside band to be released on Welch and Rawlings’ label, Acony. The solo vocals by Nagler on "103" and "No Dope" may be an acquired taste as she tends to exaggerate a drowsy drawl when singing alone, but this is a quibble — Swim contains enough homemade charm and beauty to make it appeal to most fans of modern acoustic folk.