Pas/Cal, I Was Raised On Matthew, Mark, Luke & Laura

PAS/CAL will knock you out with their happily-go-lucky, heavily-layered brand of indie-pop, and you'll be hard-pressed not to thoroughly enjoy it. Each track tells a story, with instrumentation rarely ending in the same place it began. Handclaps, whistles, harmonious "woo-oohs" and dynamic piano solos are in abundant supply and serve to brighten even the darkest of lyrical themes. Lead singer Casimal Pascal drags us down to the deepest dregs on "Dearest Bernard Living," wailing that he was "told that your young and comely wife laid her back upon a railway line, then she said goodbye," shortly before a jaunty fiddle kicks in to swoop us back up.

"We Made Our Way, We Amtrakked," is an ode to public transport that is delightful in its commitment to alliteration and worth a listen purely for the playful tongue roll on the line "you bigot, you racist." PAS/CAL show their experimental chops when they step out of boundaries set thus far and slow things down for the three part "Suite Cherry," but are back in full effect and form for the lively finale on "O My Cherry." If anything, I Was Raised on Matthew, Mark, Luke, & Laura, is proof that those trying to pick the best of 2008 a few weeks back are going to be forced to think again.