Curtail

https://www.skeletallightning.net/collections/curtail

Ask the members of Curtail to describe their sound—which, as any band will tell you, is a tough task—and they'll go abstract ("If Sheryl Crow wrote songs for Archers of Loaf") and ambitious. "It's modernized '90s alternative," says bass guitarist Dan Corby. "It's hope in tough times. It sounds big like it can fill a stadium."

Although these sentiments might seem like hyperbole, there's an element of truth within all of them—as evidenced by the Akron, Ohio, band's well-crafted debut, All Your Luck(Skeletal Lightning, May 25). Recorded and produced by guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist Ben Hendricks in his Akron home studio—and mixed and mastered by Tim Gerak (Six Parts Seven) in Denver at his Mammoth Cave Studios—the record contains plenty of '90s touchstones: distortion-ashed guitars, tightly wound hooks and intricate rhythms.

Yet All Your Luck exudes a range of moods and approaches. "Come Around" and "The Lesson" are urgent grunge-pop spirals, while the dreamier "Glow" is both buoyant and noisy. Solemn keyboards, meanwhile, give the sparse indie-pop murmur "7 Years" and stomping rocker "Rush Hour" gravitas.

Built to Spill, mellower The Dismemberment Plan and early Promise Ring are certainly sonic touchstones. But what separates All Your Luck from other releases is Curtail's songwriting vision and commitment to digging beyond superficial '90s rock signifiers. Above all, All Your Luck exudes possibility—the sense that even if life might be challenging right now, something bigger and better might be just around the corner.