Crushed Stars

On Todd Gautreau's fourth release, the pulsar qualities of his moniker manifest in "Candy Colored Tiles," a track suffused with background radiation and captured signals behind the heat haze of piano. The Texan, who also plays in electronic rock outfit Sonogram, takes a break from vocals and tucks away his guitar in preference of keyboards this time around. It's a move that initially polishes away edges and distils focus, creating a littoral flow of sounds that eddy rather than cut across waves. The latter half of the album catches a prevailing breeze. "Impervious" hoists a shuffling jazz rhythm and trumpet phrase just after "Interiors" marries hypnotic reverb organ to chain reaction drum machine beats. It's just enough of a push to keep the album from dissolving in its own atmosphere. Fans of Pan.American, the Rhodes Organ and steam baths will be pleased.