Pitchfork

Male bowerbirds build elaborate, colorful nests called bowers on the forest floor to attract mates, traveling far and wide to collect shells, leaves, feathers, twigs, and stones to decorate them. I once stayed briefly in an apartment where one of the only forms of entertainment was an outdated, colorfully illustrated book about them. You have to like a species group where the most creative animals get the most mates.

The band that takes its name from these unique birds has made a decently creative nest for itself, gathering an assortment of baubles to attract listeners, including melodica, accordion, parlor piano, acoustic guitar, choral vocals, violin, and assorted hand percussion. "Dark Horse" is grounded in earthy folk that recalls the gentle mountains of the upstate New York locale where the song takes place. The guitars are picked hard, pushed along by just a bit of clacking percussion. Violins add a dream-gloss to the proceedings, and the layered, mixed-gender vocals, lead by an Andrew Bird-ish tenor, give it a pretty, pastoral resonance. [Full disclosure town: Bowerbirds' quite lovely new LP is being released by P4k staffer Grayson Currin.]