Seldom Slumber

This is the fifth proper album from Portland's Graves. The band revolves around songwriter Greg Olin's unique vision, blending accessible, melodic songwriting with skewed lyrics, breezy arrangements, a mid-fi production aesthetic, and Olin's earnest guy-next-door vocal delivery. On this outing, Graves spices up the mix with tints of soul, Latin, and Cambodian rock. Recorded with friends at Olin's home studio, the album comfortably reflects Graves' signature disheveled sound. There's percussion in spades, pop-ballad female backups, and organ flourishes, but the secret weapon may be the cache of mellow grooves. The rhythm section hits an appealingly amateurish Motown stride and rides it through much of the track list. The band includes Cory Gray (Norfolk & Western, Desert City Soundtrack) and Nate Ashley (Left Handed, Knw-Yr-Own) as well as the usual smattering of Portland indie ninjas: Amanda Lawrence (Norfolk & Western, Loch Lomond), Kyle Field (Little Wings), Brian Wright, and Tommy McDonald.