Microcastle

Though prolific with split 7-inch releases and quickie EPs, Atlanta art-rock band Deerhunter has seen the world several times over since it recorded its last LP Cryptograms. And ectomorphic frontman Bradford Cox is now an indie celebrity, rocking a Converse ad campaign (with Santogold, Julian Casablancas, et al.) and cutting his own successful solo effort under the name Atlas Sound. Given all the distraction and escalating expectations, Microcastle could have been a mess. Instead, it’s a confident and purposefully subdued work that emphasizes the dreamier side of the quintet’s sound. Framed like an early ’60s pop song, “Little Kids” makes eloquent use of echoes and counter-melodies, while “Saved by Old Times” uses chiming guitars and casual harmonies to evoke that vintage ’80s feel beloved of, say, Mitch Easter. Cox’s breathy vocals often drift along like a cloud in a watercolor painting, paradoxically catching your focus with sheer wispiness. At times, as on “Agoraphobia,” the elements suggest a junior varsity Flaming Lips, but the band’s originality is never in doubt. This just happens to be a more grown-up and rehearsed Deerhunter.