Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest (4AD)
The warm haze of lo-fi vocals and shoegaze guitars combines with programmed beats and synth swirls to create a melodic crossbreed of electronic music and psychedelia. Deerhunter have previously established this sound on albums like Microcastle, but Halcyon Digest improves on it significantly. Perhaps their best work yet.
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Olof Arnalds - Innundir Skinni (One Little Indian)
It may be easy to predict that a native of Iceland, who is also a member of Múm, plays psychedelic folk with lush backing arrangements. Regardless of predictability, though, Arnalds' music is charming and pleasant, with her unorthodox voice adding just enough of a rough edge to keep things interesting.
Marnie Stern - Marnie Stern (Kill Rock Stars)
What a pleasant surprise! This album, filled with hyperactive but melodically driven postpunk, surpassed my expectations. It features significant instrumental proficiency, not just from Stern but also Hella's Zach Hill, whose excellent, unorthodox drumming is immediately recognizable. Imagine Kaki King jamming with Battles, only twice as awesome. This record rules.