Nebraska's Desapercidos is probably best known for giving Conor Oberst the groundwork to launch his now much lauded Bright Eyes. The band also bred a lesser known, but still deserving Little Brazil, an unassuming rock amalgamation launched by Landon Hedges as a solo project that unintentionally gathered a full cast of musicians.

Little Brazil is musically as driving and catchy as any of the best dork rock, dragging around tinges of the Weakerthans, Weezer, and especially Duvall. In fact, lead vocalist Hedges could easily be mistake for Josh Caterer with his somber vocal strength on tracks like Last Night. But the music stretches to other dimensions, with the ironically titled somber opener "A Thrilling Entrance", more crunchy singalongs like "Used to Think", and the all encompassing "On the Ropes" the strongest and darkest song on the album.

For the better, the music knows when to take a back-seat to Hedges heart-on-sleeve lyrics, that on the surface may seem a bit depressing, but underneath carry a sense of maturity and realism. This is not as defeated as the cover would indicate. These somehow pallatable melodies will remain merged in your mind, which is fine as long as they don't cloud an otherwise sunny day.

 

Artist: Little Brazil