With relaxed percussion, muffled production and scuffed guitar lines, Woods‘ pastoral psyche-folk ranges from loose and lengthy jams to summery indie to beautifully fluttery freak-folk. And, continuing to put the adage about true perfection having to be imperfect to good use, Sun And Shade quickly reveals itself as no game-changer, largely following as it does in the bare footsteps of last year’s gorgeous At Echo Lake, as well as its predecessor Songs Of Shame.

Consequently, back in the fold are cuts like the running-time-heavy “Sol Y Sombra”, which runs with a smoky, Eastern-inflected vibe and glassy stare. So too, “Out Of The Eye”, which rolls out instead some choice krautrock bedding for its tasty, tunnel-vision repeats.

Elsewhere, however, it’s back to basics for the Woods boys: Jeremy Earl, Jarvis Taveniere and Lucas Crane. Having retreated a little to the titular shade of the album, back in part to jangling 60s psychedelia, once again we find impressive songwriter Earl’s creaking falsetto playing amongst his now-dappled melodies all the same.

The single, “Pushing Onlys”, channels high-grade, dusty pop from decades ago. Fragile and pretty, “Be All Be Easy” is the introvert cousin to the horizontal hi-jinx of “Hand It Out” The forgettable Terence Boylan cover, “Who Do You Think I Am?” is happily erased by the likeable tenderness of tracks like “Any Other Day” and “Say Goodbye”.

Towards its close, Sun And Shade doesn’t have the consistency of At Echo Lake, but then neither did Songs Of Shame, nor earlier offerings. Those albums, like this, nevertheless offer absorbing depth away from a full solar glare. Whilst, under a summer sun, a dip in the cool waters of Echo Lake is undeniably inviting, so too is meandering lost in the shade.

Advised downloads: “Pushing Onlys” and “Be All Be Easy”.

_{Sun And Shade is out now on Woodsist.}

[sic] review – At Echo Lake

[sic] review – Songs Of Shame

Woods @ myspace