By Alex HudsonHey Rosetta! have always had a flair for the dramatic, and the Newfoundland six-piece sound as epic as ever on third LP Seeds. The group recruited additional string players for the recording sessions, layering these contributions repeatedly to create a faux-orchestra. The lush strings give extra heft to the group's cinematic folk rock songs, which contain everything from skanking reggae grooves ("New Sum") to Inuit throat singing ("Parson Brown") to booty-shaking, Afro-rock breakdowns ("Yer Spring"). On the cinematic "Yer Fall," the band follow Arcade Fire's baroque rock blueprint, and the sweeping, group-sung crescendo sounds distinctly similar to "Wake Up." The intricate arrangements are impressive, but the band sound best when they strip things down. Closing track "Bandages" is a gorgeous palate cleanser, relying on little more than strummed acoustic guitar and some sparse accompaniment to convey frontman Tim Baker's heartbreaking message: "The nothing weighs a fucking ton." For Hey Rosetta!, bigger isn't always better. (Sonic)
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