Always on the tip of my tongue

This one is just satisfying. Everything is in its place, but satisfyingly askew.
Singer Matthew Kerstein sounds more than a little like the Walkmen's Hamilton Leithauser, with that just-precise-enough voice that rises and falls in unexpected places. The rest of the band - guitarist Jim Tuerk, bassist Devon Bryant, drummer Sam Koentopp - do their thing behind him, almost as a separate entity.
Brighton MA is named after Kerstein's hometown, but the band hails from Chicago. This track is from their album Amateur Lovers, out next month on Loose Tooth Records. I'm really liking this CD - it's full of catchy melodies and subtle production, and the band's playing is patient but still forceful. It's all very.... good. Can we just leave it at that?
Amateur Lovers comes out on Oct. 28. Check out Brighton MA's MySpace page for tons of tour dates.