Its tempting to call Sunset Rubdown the side project of Wolf Parade singer/multi-instrumentalist Spencer Krug (also of Frog Eyes and Swan Lake), but that would imply its not as important a gig to Krug, or as well-known as his primary outfit, and neither is correct. Begun as a solo project in 2005, Sunset Rubdown has expanded to a quintet, and has just released Dragonslayer, its fourth acclaimed full-length of zig-zagging, proggy indie-rock (the band also has two EPs to its name). Craggy guitars, psychedelic organ grooves, New Wave-y vocal yelps, skittering rhythms, background female coos, and bursts of joyous noise all play a role in Krugs epic, engaging jams, and his desperately sung lyrics are among the most fascinating, and inscrutable, in all of indie-rockdom: See the sirens and the lizards lick their tongues behind the stage/See the actor keep a ritual to keep them all at bay/He would like to come home naked without war paint on his face/And appear before you, virgin white if virgins are still chaste.
Sat., June 27, 8 p.m., 2009
