Transactions + Replications

RESTOCK. "The fine folks at Barsuk Records can celebrate another conquest with this fine specimen of sheer euphonious ecstasy. On its second full-length album (following 1999's Pillow), Little Champions execute a twisted amalgam of jerky neo-mod and weirdo pop ala Death Cab for Cutie or Quasi, with a dash of Sleater-Kinney thrown in for good measure. Constantly swinging moods from loud and relentlessly driving to quiet and whimsically reflective, the band thankfully has a gift for continuity. Where others would appear merely schizophrenic, Transactions + Replications somehow makes it all work. The sexually integrated lineup only adds to the suspicion that Little Champions could be the next B-52s. This is music that turns grass green again, sharpens old crayons, makes evil clowns turn good, and restores our faith in Seattle." (Action Attack Helicopter)