Mobius Band

After three years of wood-shedding in the pine forests of Shutesbury, Massachusetts, electronic rock trio is trading up: from shoe-string home recording to Peter Katis's (Interpol, Rainer Maria) Tarquin Studios; from rural Massachusetts to Brooklyn (two-thirds of the band anyway); and from their own label to Ghostly International for the City Vs Country EP.

These changes follow the band's gradual evolution over the course of three self-released EPs, from exploratory composers of instrumental suites to crafters of gracefully intricate pop gems. The band's trademark sound combines loose guitars, delicate vocals and hard-hitting drums with tightly-wound electronics. The five songs on City Vs Country are filled with mournful refrains and unexpected textures, accented by soaring guitar lines and an uncanny cinematic sense.

Mobius Band's early days in the woods of western Massachusetts were marked by a familiar trajectory of broken down vans, Tuesday night gigs and drunken bar crowds. But their inventive sound perked ears, and they quickly became an underdog favorite up and down the east coast. The recent migration of two members to New York has lent a confident sheen to their "modern backwoods" aesthetic, which maintains a natural charm that would seem forced by any other band.