Fat Possum

For their self-titled second album on the Fat Possum label, New York City’s Caveman bring their brand of atmospheric indie rock to the next level of creative fortitude. Whereas their 2011 debut CoCo Beware utilized the percussion madness of drummer Stefan Marolachakis as the primary force for their characteristic sound palette, on Caveman the quintet moves beyond the primal rhythms and closer toward the brilliant interplay between lead ax and custom guitar maker James Carbonetti and the retro-minded synth work of keyboardist Sam Hopkins. The result parrots the serenity of Caveman’s creative conception at Carbonetti’s grandmother’s house in New Hampshire, as evidenced by the strength of such material as “Chances,” “Over My Head” and “The Big Push,” which come off sounding like Fleet Foxes if they were inspired by The Ocean Blue instead of CSNY. Or, in the case of lead single “In The City,” the deeper moments of The Police’s Synchronicity.