The Pernice Brothers

If the Pernice Brothers' newest full-length, Discover a Lovelier You, sounds just a little more optimistic than earlier releases, it's an unintended nuance. Singer-songwriter Joe Pernice really doesn't see it as a radical departure from 2003's Yours, Mine and Ours, although the press has called it everything from his poppiest record to his darkest material yet. "I guess it might be a little jangly at times," he admits. That's it? There's not a tentative glimmer of happiness in a few of those songs? Sort of, Pernice concedes. "There's always a string attached," he says. "And sometimes it's a rope." True to Pernice's body of work, which includes three records with the Scud Mountain Boys, two solo releases (one under the name Chappaquiddick Skyline), and four prior Pernice Brothers albums, Discover is skeptical but not smug, witty but grounded in humble sincerity. Even his take on romanticism is cheeky. You could say that "bittersweet" is the perfect word to describe these deceptively melodic, immaculately crafted pop songs. Or you could just call them gorgeous.