Golden

Golden is the most modest indie supergroup imaginable. The band sports an impressive underground pedigree. Alex Minoff, who splits singing and guitar-playing duties with Ian Eagleson, has logged time in Six Finger Satellite and the Make Up; drummer Jon Theodore has worked with Royal Trux, Palace and Mars Volta; and bassist Philip Manley is part of Trans Am. In spite of such credentials, Apollo Stars, Golden's fourth disc, emerges as a hype-free, party-time charmer that's utterly lacking in pretense and self-consciousness. The combo's twisted takes on blues, funk and alt-rock may seem a bit arch at times, but tunes such as "Feel This Flow" and "The Other Side of the Sun" — with cheerfully absurd lyrics ("Chicken bone!/The Superdome!") — provide plenty of sweaty fun nonetheless. In other words, Golden is solid.