Rogue Wave

Geographically, Rogue Wave resides in Oakland, but musically, the band comes from the same sunny indie-pop hills as the Shins and Built to Spill, where glasses are half full and minor chords exist only as stepping stones to the next major. Place the band's recent major label debut, Asleep at Heaven's Gate, into your preferred music listening device and your speakers are likely to emit glitter, rainbows and high fives. Still, the lush, full-bodied Gate finds Rogue Wave dulling its edges with 100-grade sandpaper; the band experiments with longer songs and brings Zach Rogue's deliberately delivered vocals into sharp focus. Some might say the shimmer of their previous two Sub Pop releases has dimmed slightly, but only in exchange for hooks sharp enough to hang your Nada Surf hoodie on.