This Portland trio makes some brilliant laptop-esque pop noise. Even better, there are no laptops involved. Just minimalist keyboards backed by bass and drums.

Swansea Flaws (self-released)

And, yes, quirky. Swansea rarely gets to the point quickly, but that journey is generally at least as involving as the band's off-kilter hooks. Perhaps early LCD Soundsystem playing Human League songs. Or, you know, something much stranger and more intriguing.

I just can't get over the indie pop blister in these songs. The sound is almost conceptual at times, but the band dynamic wipes that away almost instantly. These songs are meant to be played live. They bristle with electricity.

Every song draws the listener in further. While Swansea sounds like it is trafficking in the most basic of sounds, the truth is the opposite. The sophistication of this "simple" style is incredibly hard to master. And mistakes are impossible to hide. Luckily, Flaws has few flaws. Swansea knows exactly what it is doing. Be entranced.

Jon Worley