Laslow

Although half-brothers Eli Battles and Drew Thurston grew up six years apart with completely different musical interests, music ended up being a connector between them when they formed Laslow. On the inside cover of the duo's debut, A Quality of Light, there's a photo of Thurston playing a dual-neck MIDI hybrid bass, which he designed and built — evidence that the brothers are serious about their music before the disc even gets popped in the player. And Thurston plays the hell out of that bass on "Nature," which would be one of the strongest tracks on the disc were it not for what sounds like Auto-Tune slathered over Battles's vocals. The snappy "Silver Lining" and the catchy "The Dancer" are other standouts on this solid collection of progressive roots tunes.