Nikki Sudden

The Last Bandit collects 19 tracks from the last 20 years of Sudden's career. His solo work is not nearly as noisy or chaotic as the Swell Maps, his previous band with brother Epic Soundtracks. In fact, it's wonderfully poppy and hooky with a bracing edge and a ramshackle charm. Sudden's nasal vocals make him sounds like a Brit Neil Young at times, though it's a much poppier and more psychedelic version. But many of his melodies have the same mournful beauty and strength as Neil's. His cover of Young's "Captain Kennedy" is one of the disc's highlights. Other times, he sounds like a more melodic Mekons, and you can also throw some Stones and Dylan into the mix for good measure. There's a bonus EP included that contains seven bonus solo acoustic tracks. And there's a not a dog in the bunch.