Push the Heart
(Bella Union)
Alt.rock isn’t short of enigmatic, ethereal balladeers but occasionally a song stops you dead in your tracks. Lie to Me, which opens this LA duo’s third album, is drop-dead gorgeous, fusing Patsy Cline’s lonesome-prairie lilt to Portishead’s spooked drama and Mazzy Star’s opiate blues.
The vocalist Sara Lov and the multi-instrumentalist Dustin O’Halloran have their work cut out to prolong the spell, though A Secret Message to You’s sepia mood (typewriter keys gently tap out the beat behind the accordion), and a particularly serene Salty Sea do the job. Things dip halfway through, when Dèvics shift to a rockier gear, but the last three tracks are benchmarks in torch-song requiems.
MARTIN ASTON