Okkervil River — The Stand Ins

The sequel to last year's The Stage Names was recorded in the band's hometown of Austin, Texas and produced by the group and longtime collaborator Brian Beattie. As the titles of this disc and its predecessor suggest, there's a cinematic quality to the material and there are three short instrumental pieces (all titled "Stand Ins" and then respectively numbered) similar to a movie score. "Pop Lie" ranks among the 10-year-old band's best songs and highlights frontman Will Sheff's distinctive voice and the musicians' instrumental prowess. The jangly pop sounds on "Singer Songwriter" are also a high point. Several songs run about five minutes or more, which is fine on "Lost Coastlines" (on which Sheff and recently departed member Jonathan Meiburg of Shearwater duet about the highs and lows of keeping a band together) and "On Tour With Zykos," but the slower and quieter "Blue Tulip" drags on too long. Okkervil River's popularity has grown steadily over the past few years and, while the band are still at their best on stage, The Stand Ins shouldn't stunt their growth.

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