Texas Platters

Peter & the Wolf

(Whiskey and Apples)

A famous Canadian Zen Buddhist once remarked "There's a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in," and the spare strum of L.A. transplant Red Hunter shines through every crack on his latest full-length. With the golden-voiced Dana Falconberry accompanying him, the stark beauty of the like-minded Iron and Wine can be heard on opener "The Apple Tree." There's the haunting golden aura of "Strange Eyes," the quiet shrug of "Couches by the Sea," and the velvety melodies of "The Owl," which pairs Hunter's dusty plucking with a high-plains folk waltz. The sly Waits-twine of "Dear Old Robyn" insists "tomorrow we return to the sea" (which they will, this summer when they sail the East Coast on tour) against the jest "My friends say I'm bipolar. My friends are sometimes wrong." "Silent Movies" is the classic here, a woozy love song that stumbles over Hunter's declaration "I truly believe we'll fall in love again." Through 12 grainy songs in under a half hour, Hunter's tales of the sea, sun, and moon are so perfect and uplifting, you just want to vomit a rainbow. Hunter's not traversing uncharted territory, but there's a reason Sam Beam and Bill Callahan will outlast Fall Out Boy. (CD release: Sunday, June 25, Emo's)