Headed by the Brothers Dick (Alex and Daniel), this Windsor, Ontario, outfit has spent the last five years scrabbling around the vastness between Detroit and Toronto. There's no good reason why they settled on a heavy psychedelic groove, but here we are.

The Brandy Alexanders The Brandy Alexanders (Gypsy Soul)

Relying on late-60s pop construction and a massive load of reverb, the Brandy Alexanders are the much scruffier cousin of fellow Canadian act Elephant Stone (minus a virtuoso sitar player). I suppose another way to hear this is a garage-y version of Brian Jonestown Massacre's modern psychedelic sound.

Not complicated, to-the-point and almost jarringly jaunty, the Brandy Alexanders often play against expectation. Perhaps the band simply doesn't know any better, but I'm thinking these guys have honed these songs and this feel for quite a while.

A real sneak job. The simple sound and arrangements belie an advanced approach. There's plenty of depth behind the wall of shimmer. This sucker is of a time and place ... but I'm not sure exactly when and where that might be. So much the better.

Jon Worley