Head of Femur

“Climbing Up Fire Escapes” by Head of Femur, from Great Plains (East Park Plaza Music):

When Saddle Creek Records was blowing up like Furbies, Nebraska’s Head of Femur moved to Chicago. Though the band shared Saddle Creek’s throw-everything-into-the-pot recording mentality (as well as producer A.J. Mogis), it seemed to be aiming for something more exotic. With ambitions recalling Todd Rundgren, the group’s first two albums alternately flourished and flopped on the merits of grandiose arrangements that called for brass, strings and orchestral percussion. Much of that unwieldiness has been trimmed on Femur’s third LP, Great Plains, which finds the group’s core trio stripping down to bare-necessities rock tunes with more immediate payoffs.