ELF POWER
In A Cave

It’s difficult not to feel a little bad for Elf Power. The band was part of the much-adored Elephant 6 collective, but it was neither the beneficiary of the cultish adoration of its founders or seemingly capable of reinvention along the lines of E6-adjacent acts like Of Montreal. So what was next for Elf Power’s ninth album? Shaking off the lovely if staid chamber-pop elegance of 2006’s Back To The Web, the band answers with self-assured grace, filling In A Cave with the sort of fuzzy headphone nuggets, bizarre sounds and catchy psych/pop effervescence that was the hallmark of its old peers. Frontman Andrew Rieger’s limited-yet-distinctive rasp still anchors the proceedings, but whether it’s the result of the return of drummer Eric  Harris or simply a renewed sense of purpose, Elf Power sounds invigorated, most notably on the twitchy, near-new wave of “Paralyzed” and the lo-fi drive of “Spiral Stairs.” Granted, it’s not necessarily revolutionary for a band to rediscover the simple charm of its roots, but for groups that have struggled in evolving into a more “mature” sound, it’s not a bad lesson. [Rykodisc, www.rykodisc.com]

—Chris Barton