Radar Brings Soothing Sound Out of the Basement; Young Revives Crazy Horse

And The Surrounding Mountains
Four Stars

The Radar Brothers use understated, lulling sounds to put into music the feeling of floating on gentle waves.

The fluid-like songs on the band's third album, And The Surrounding Mountains, flow into one another, making for a smooth 50-minute jam. With three- to five-minute songs, the album can fly by, drawing listeners in during the first track, "You and the Father," and transporting them through the entire CD.

The similarity between the songs could become monotonous if not for the changing tempos and different instruments incorporated into the various tracks. Some songs boast an almost orchestral quality while others are simpler, consisting of synthesizers, guitars and drums like "Rock Of The Lake."

Few songs might differ in composition, but all include the introspective lyrics delivered by Jim Putnam who plays guitar, piano and synthesizers on the album -- in addition to singing. Band members Steve Goodfriend and Senon Gaius Williams charmingly harmonize with Putnam on most of the songs.

And The Surrounding Mountains never strays from the calm; the songs' tempos never go beyond the rolling, relaxed beats. This album is perfect for the insomniac or stressed college student -- simple and soothing.

With the sound being so simple, it's hard to imagine the music being produced in the studio. It sounds more like a couple of friends jamming in a basement, more comfortable than rehearsed.

Although comfortable and relaxing, the music is more bitter than it is happy. The songs are by no means dark, but an overriding sadness permeates, filling the album with undertones of loss and grief.

And often the music's pep sugarcoats the melancholic edge of the band's musings -- the lighthearted plucking of the piano on "Mothers" contrasts with the darkness of the lyrics: "The mothers are angry now/Sharpen your spears."

The brooding lyrics seem to bleed into the instrumentals and are often hard to distinguish from each other. Putnam's high vocals match the notes of his guitar, especially on the introspective "Uncles."

Even more indistinguishable are the opening lines to "Still Evil," sounding like children singing in a Dr. Seuss-like, nonexistent language. If "Still Evil" is using a language, it is hard to decipher.

The song segues into the more decipherable lyrics, "Send for a bottle of your favorite watered-down thoughts/And keep all those guessing in the gardens and golden fields/I'll motor over there, the car will be dirty and hot/But you are still evil," but the inventive --