Religious Knives: Smokescreen

Label: Sacred Bones

Love this sound. Religious Knives are one of our favorite NYC psych outfits but their activity level suits a pair of parents and assorted other players: It happens when it does. On their debut for the Sacred Bones label, the quartet—fronted by ex-Double Leopards Maya Miller and Michael Bernstein—don't alter their sound much, but they broaden it greatly. Theirs is a shadowy yet incredibly vibrant world: Bernstein's blistering guitar lines rip through the darkness, Miller's stately organ playing colors the sky and also adds an additional pulsating energy to the elemental rhythmic section (rolling floor toms, shakers, snaking bass). On "Garbage Can" Miller sounds like she's channeling a host of '60s avant-garde vocalists while the band just roars along; "Big Police" balances the simplicity and outright prettiness of her playing with a raw, howling guitar, as the rhythm section moves from march to gallop and Bernstein repeats "Watch out, watch out, watch out." Mesmerizing sounds, expansive emotion—vital and unique stuff!