Tonight! Neil Halstead at the Jackpot (MP3 enhanced)

Neil Halstead‘s dramatic ascent into the hearts of sleepy-music aficionados far and wide began with Slowdive, a shoegazey English band that channeled choice chunks of the Cocteau Twins and the Jesus and Mary Chain. The group left a couple of critically acclaimed albums in its wake when it disbanded in 1995, but Halstead quickly regrouped as Mojave 3 and become one of the 4AD label’s signature acts. In hindsight, everything leading up to 2006’s Puzzles Like You was merely a dress rehearsal, because that album’s shimmering uptempo pop broke shoegazer rank and clicked its heels at every turn. Halstead curiously partnered with Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Records for his 2008 solo release Oh! Mighty Engine, which toned back the exuberance of Puzzles in favor of campfire folk and bare-bones arrangements. It’s hard to imagine fans of Johnson and G. Love hopping aboard Halstead’s mellow train, but you can’t fault the soft-spoken Brit for trying to reach new audiences – who will presumably make tonight’s Lawrence show a crowded affair.

Neil Halstead plays tonight, Monday March 16, with Joshua James and Barclay Martin, at the Jackpot Music Hall.