QUICK SPIN: Miles Kurosky

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 17, 2010 9:00PM

In which we take a quick look at a recent musical release.

Miles Kurosky
The Desert Of Shallow Effects

Miles Kurosky is best known for his work in Beulah, an early indie band that arguably begat the current wave of like-minded orch-pop groups including Ra Ra Riot and Feelance Whales. The Desert Of Shallow Effects is his solo debut and, to be honest, it sounds like a new Beulah album. So this disc should both please old fans because of that while appealing to new fans thanks to the other groups who've kept the sound in the public mind. Of course that means Kurosky also runs the risk of being lost in the shuffle since the sound he helped build has been co-opted by so many.

So does he dodge that bullet? Hell yes he does. This is solidly a case of songwriter at the peak of his power, seeding the songs with a firm intelligence and sure hand that is a few steps removed from his earlier modus operandi that was more grounded in rhythm and repetition. While the album does use a couple other ex-members of Beulah its cast of characters is so varied that the tapestries of sound they produce can't help but be a little more finely woven than Kurosky's earlier work. There's also a new slightly more theatrical delivery to his lyrics that helps propel the songs along more literary parallels than we're used to hearing from him. The Desert Of Shallow Effects is resolutely not a comeback album; it's a logical and satisfying next step in Kurosky's development.

Miles Kurosky plays Schubas on April 1