Barfly

There's this budding band from Austin, TX that just gets it. It, being a thorough calculation of melody, albums of shimmering architecture, and songs that read as stirring self-actualizations. They're called Pompeii, and so far, they've done everything right. On their debut full-length, Assembly, the band created sleeper hits in songs like "Numbers" and "Pythons, Awake!", both working the mid-tempo balance between a great hook and nostalgic instrumentation. So effortless, so organic - the band's rapport for dreamy indie rock fell into place without so much as a bruise or tripwire.

The band is only one of many in Austin, obviously, because indie rock bands are as frequent as traffic lights in this city of weird. Not that it mattered much. When Eyeball Records owner Alex Saavedra saw the band once at a day party showcase at South by Southwest 2005, he immediately offered them a contract. Less than a year later, the label released Assembly.It gained critical acclaim, a buzzing fan base, received 4-stars in American Songwriter, and became available in Japan.The band toured the US in support, and played the CMJ Festival in New York. Pompeii provided tunes that a listener could really connect with, thanks to a kinship to indie mainstays like Death Cab For Cutie and Matt Pond PA, songwriting that was mindful of chirping, sentimental tones, and Stafford's knack for personal and personable lyricism. Part romantic and part bittersweet, sometimes grand, sometimes small and intimate, Pompeii are a lot of things and all of which they do well.