Paperback Ghosts

British indie rocker David Feck has been leading Comet Gain since the early ‘90s, and he continues to charm with his very individualistic and poetic takes on love and life. *Paperback Ghosts*, Comet Gain\'s seventh album, is filled with thoughtful, heart-tugging balladry and sprightly, jangly pop tunes (like the delightful “All the Avenue Girls and “Sad Love”), accented with doses of psych-rock. Many of the ballads—which often conjure The Go-Betweens—rely on warm, vintage-flavored organs and strings that reference orchestral pop while not being rooted there. The haunting “An Orchid Stuck Inside Her Throat” floats on a merry-go-round of guitar, keyboards, and sadness, and the violin melody of “Wait ‘til December” is as bittersweet as they come. “I’m affected by the corniest scenes of the cheesiest movies,” a sensitive Feck confesses on the inspired “Last Love Letter,” which features Rachel Evans. The guy is a hopeless romantic, and his proud embracing of it makes Comet Gain such a treasure.

The seventh full-length from one of Britain's most intriguing bands throws up another eccentric collection of pop songs

Now at 22 years and counting, the only question anyone needs to ask about a new Comet Gain record is, have they lost it yet?