Zapruder Point

After the first two songs–one robotic, the other slow ‘n’ echoey–I harbored real concerns that The Singular’s debut would be a glum trip indeed. But with the arrival of the third song, all was set to rights. “Nobody” is a real pop barn-burner–more in a Ben Folds way than Led Zeppelin–and an early entry into my Best Songs of 2007. But after a few spins of the whole EP, it emerges that alongside the more overt pleasures of “Nobody,” other songs transmit an equal if subtler heft–the desolation of “An End to Words,” the crunch of “Spiders.” Even the formerly disregarded second song (“Treading Water”) has a tension I didn’t notice the first time around. I Finally Know What’s Good For Me isn’t the feel-good jam of the summer, but it packs more textures into its 22 minutes than most double-disc sets, and it’s ultimately very rewardingly sequenced. We need our winter records, too, and if you’re willing to immerse yourself in its icy depths, this is a good one.