*** Rachel's

SELENOGRAPHY

(Quarterstick)

The loveliest albums are often the saddest. Such is the case with Selenography, the fourth full-length from a unusual ensemble of indie-rock types who have chosen to embrace classical chamber music and explore gorgeous plateaux where pop music rarely wanders. "Selenography" is defined as the study of the moon's physical features, and that proves to be an accurate metaphor for the way Rachel's explore musical crags and dark crevices. Their austere music is steeped in a passionate, well-shaped melancholy that would have done Astor Piazzolla proud.

Formed around the core group of pianist Rachel Grimes, guitarist Jason Noble, and violinist Christian Frederickson, Rachel's are this time abetted by members of Shellac, Coctails, Hula Hoop, and two classical orchestras. Although "The Last Light" and "Old Road 60" tear like a stake through the heart, the CD is never hopelessly sullen or monotonous. "Kentucky Nocturne" is buoyed by the lilting sway of Edward Grimes's soft, shifting backbeats; furious harpsichord arpeggios brighten the corners of "Honeysuckle Suite (Sugar Maple -- Elm -- Sweetgum)"; and there are surges of hope when the rest of the ensemble join in behind Rachel Grimes's muted piano on "A French Galleasse."

-- Tristram Lozaw