Collegiate Times

Just when you thought the best things to come out of Baltimore were crab cakes and videos featuring certain NBA stars telling you not to snitch, Beach House has burst onto the scene with its infectious brand of reverb-driven dream pop that is sure to tickle your cortex in all the right spots.

With Alex Scalley on slide guitar and keyboards and Victoria Legrand on the organ and vocals, Beach House has crafted a sophomore release in "Devotion" that is chock-full of wispy tunes that are altogether arresting in the moment but will end up staying with you for days afterward.

Whether or not you care for the kind of luscious indie dream pop crafted by Beach House, "Devotion" is nevertheless a fine foray into the subconscious side of music, and is a must-have for fans and an interesting experiment for casual visitors to the genre.

Essential Tracks: "Gila," "Turtle Island" and "Heart of Chambers"

Three things you'll love:

Chemistry

It's obvious when listening to this record that Beach House shares a nice working rapport, as evidenced by the way that Scalley's lonely slide guitar compliments Legrand's wispy work on the organ and the mic. Finding a band whose members have a good idea of each other's space is a difficult thing to do, but the results are always a pleasure to listen to.

The Organ

I'll just say it: The organ may be the most underutilized tool in popular music today, save for perhaps the euphonium, but that's another story altogether. Legrand's use of the organ on "Devotion" gives tunes such as "Wedding Bell" and "Astronaut" a wonderfully dreamy foundation that will lull you into a musical daze, right up till the moment that Scalley's slide guitar enters the fray and shakes things up.

Singing Along

The choruses on "Gila" and "Turtle Island" are simple, but infectious and are definitely fun to sing along to. "Gila's" chorus is built on the repetition of the word "Oh" 16 times (there's a key change on the ninth one), while "Turtle Island" is just expansive and melodic enough to cast a spell on you every time you hear it.

Three things you might not like:

Sparseness

There isn't a lot going on in these Beach House songs, just a rotation of organ, keyboards and slide guitar that work to compliment Legrand's dreamy vocals. The occasional drum beat and tambourine flourish also pop up on the record, but are few and far between.

Pace

If you're a fan of up-tempo tunes that shake you out of your chair when you hear them, then by all means pass on Beach House on your next trip the music store. All you'll find here are slow, brooding tunes that serve to relax rather than rile.

Reverb

There's plenty of it on "Devotion," where oftentimes Legrand sounds as if she's singing underwater. It's something that works on the album as a whole, but can be a little off-putting on the first go-round.

Overall Grade: B+