Delta Spirit

Audio Mixer: Tchad Blake.
Recording information: Dreamland, West Hurley, NY; Stratosphere, New York, NY; Sunken City, San Pedro, CA.
Photographer: Matt Wignall.
Delta Spirit's third full-length, a gauzy self-titled effort on Rounder Records, finds the band continuing ahead after changing their lineup for History from Below and making a move from Long Beach to Brooklyn. The city's influences are readily apparent, with Afro-pop guitar lines that mirror Yeasayer or Vampire Weekend, and there is an added upbeat edge to the simple Americana melodies of their previous records. Still, Delta Spirit is an album of conventional, accessible material. There's little evidence that this is a band hyped for using trash can percussion in live shows. Instead, the music is a fairly straightforward mix of indie rock and alt-country, with Matt Vasquez reining in his voice to give the slow burning "Time Bomb" and the sleepy, fingerpicked echoes of "Home" a yearning, Lindsey Buckingham quality. Meanwhile, the driving beats and soaring harmonies of "Idaho" and "Money Saves" are readymade for the Bonnaroo festival stage. Even if there's nothing inherently new about the band's take on rock, and at times they seem too comfortable coasting on trends from the mid-2000s, Delta Spirit manage to convey a likeable sound that is strong and intimate at the same time. ~ Jason Lymangrover