Eyelids - 854 (2014)

You’d think a band with members of Guided by Voices and the Decemberists would get more attention by default. But even without those connections, the pure psych-pop of 854 is exactly the kind of thing that should have gotten way more attention. These are lush and bittersweet tunes, from the rolling hooks and perfect melodies of “Seagull into Submission” to the swirling, down-the-rabbit-hole layers of “Psych #1” to the darker textures of echoing guitar on “Floating Underground”. This Northwest outfit shows its musical pedigree at every turn here, establishing a hazy pop focus and then pushing it in all directions. 854 is always catchy, but there’s an unsettling underbelly to these songs, sounds that grind against all that lush bittersweetness. The space-rock of “Mile to Wave” hints at the sly muscle under all these harmonies, all those blurred tones. “Everybody” peels back much of the miasma here to show the directness of the pop sensibility at play here. In short, 854 unfolds on you, and in the end is much more than it seems to be at first blush. It’s one of those records worth unpacking, mostly because it never feels like work.