Mice Parade

It’s difficult to convert one’s name into a clever anagram, but it’s even more intellectually trying to rearrange the letters until they form an apt critical description of one’s musical stylings. Adam Pierce accomplished this alphabetic anomaly with Mice Parade, which indeed sounds like a festive procession of scampering rodents. From the pitter-patter drum-breaks to the faint, squeaky vocals on the opening track, Pierce sustains this aural imagery with impressive attention to detail. He also adds enough shimmering sounds to make the entire album sound like it’s sparkling. Pierce plays assorted instruments on his records, which could have been quite a challenge to pull off live. Fortunately for his fans, instead of opting for the prerecorded push-button approach, he’s bringing a band stocked with two drum sets, vibes, marimbas, classical guitars and horns. Pierce also appears in opening act Him, which makes up in tribal, Afro-fusion rhythms what it lacks in wordplay wiggle-room.