This EP’s namesake, one of the best tracks from last year’s breakthrough, Furr, is given special treatment here and allowed to kick off a new batch of songs. While it proves worthwhile to revisit a fantastic track like “Black River Killer,” that darkly whimsical tale of a killer who can’t help but evade redemption, this EP feels a little thrown together and lacks the propulsive energy that made Furr so likable. Here, Blitzen Trapper show a willingness to branch out and expand their influences. “Preachers Sisters Boy” features a synth line that has to have been stolen from the Cars, but still sounds like more of the same. The mid-tempo “Going Down” sees Blitzen Trapper starting to recycle their melodies, while “Shoulder Full of You” could pass for one of Beck’s more sentimental acoustic numbers. At this point, Blitzen Trapper appear to have settled on a formula that’s worked quite well for them, but this EP leaves me wondering where they can go from here, whether they have the ability to take their classic rock Americana to the next level. (Sub Pop, www.subpop.com) Jonathan Dyck
The Antlers – Hospice
This remarkably assured album from the Brooklyn-based band The Antlers is all about space and atmosphere. What started out as a lo-fi solo project for Peter Silberman has evolved into an epic collaborative project over two years in the making. Though not a particularly difficult record, Hospice rewards patient listening with a tightly bound narrative about isolation and terminal illness. Melodically, it’s a pretty straightforward chamber-pop record, and at times it even sounds a bit formulaic, but on a song like “Kettering” (which, on its own wouldn’t be all that interesting) there’s so much going on thematically, and such a careful texturing of sound, that the track takes on a new life, slowly building into something almost raucous, almost hopeful. “Bear” features the same sort of upbeat flickering, with a cutting chorus (“We’re too old / We’re not old at all”) that disappears as quickly as it emerged. This haunting quality is the most powerful aspect of Hospice, which teeters between vacuous drones and lush flourishes, and finds The Antlers at their best in the echoes and whispers of songs like the beautiful “Shiva” and the inspiring “Wake.” Hospice is pretty heavy and perhaps a bit too serious. As one critic has said, it’s “music for people who like hospitals,” which doesn’t strike me as a compliment. Indeed, it will be interesting to see where yhe Antlers go from here, to see if there is, after all, life beyond hospital walls. (French Kiss, www.frenchkissrecords.com) Jonathan Dyck