Fang Island

Even though this Brooklyn-based band took its name from an article in The Onion about the location of Donald Rumsfeld's secret hideout, there's nothing sinister about the act's music. If anything, Fang Island, not unlike White Denim, figured out how to bring together styles that shouldn't work side by side. But rather than psychedelia, Fang mates exuberant indie pop with progressive rock structures, and the disciplined approach to the instrumentation allows the group to use a broad palette of dynamics to heighten the sense of excitement the music exudes. Fang's sound is often compared to older Animal Collective, but unlike many of that band's followers, these guys write songs that are played with a sense of purpose and not a vague notion of melody.