Sterling + The Poison Arrows

While it was sad to see local indie rockers Atombombpocketknife call it quits in 2003, the break freed its members to pursue some more off-kilter projects, which are finally starting to bear some fruit. Singer-guitarist Justin Sinkovich has been releasing remixes and solo electronic tracks under the Poison Arrows name for a while, but now he’s got some serious muscle behind him. Recruiting drummer Adam Reach and former Don Caballero bassist Patrick Morris to flesh out his jittery soundscapes, their new File 13 EP Straight Into the Drift is a heady taste of things to come. Rocking out like Trans Am without the goofy Kraftwerk man-machine shtick, these guys layer ghostly vocals and chiming guitar riffs over crunchy breakbeat-inspired drums, but Morris’s elegantly grinding bass is the secret weapon holding it all together.

ABPK drummer Tony Lazzara moved even further left of center when he hooked up with guitarist Eric Chaleff in Sterling. After taking baby steps with their earlier instru-rock explorations, they hooked up with 90 Day Men keyboardist Andy Lansangan for the new Cursed, also on File 13. Elaborately plowing through three epic tracks (pristinely produced by Mike Lust), they’ve fine-tuned their rumbling rhythms and guitar orchestrations, scaling the heights of art rock and ending up somewhere between Slint’s Spiderland and vintage Yes. Lansangan’s piano and synthesizers add plenty of brooding mystery, and remarkably for lengthy instrumental compositions, the music is way more propulsive than meandering.—Ben Taylor