Sanctuary of Sound (Independent)

Good God, lady—where have you been hiding? Based on the first-listen wonder that is Sanctuary of Sound, Laurie Biagini won’t be flying under the radar for long. Remember that warm and fuzzy feeling you got the first time you heard the Velvet Underground, Mazzy Star, Camera Obscura, or the Dum Dum Girls? Get ready to live the magic all over again, right from the album’s reverb-drenched opening track, “Two of a Kind”. This is classic ’60s-vintage pop given a psycho-candy coating, the whole thing held together by Biagini’s winsome vocals and effortless understanding of what makes a lethal hook.

So, who cares if the kaleidoscopic “Autumn Years” borrows a little from the Siouxsie and the Banshees version of the Beatles’ “Dear Prudence”, or if “Monkey Business” skirts dangerously close to being too cute for its own good unless you’re an easily excited kid looking for something cooler than the Doodlebops?

Those aren’t even minor quibbles—more like needless nitpicking. Standing back and looking at the big, golden picture, Sanctuary of Sound is a serious runner for local revelation of the year. Biagini might have been hanging back in the shadows until now, but she’s just served notice that she’s ready for her coming-out party.