Cuddle Magic -- Info Nympho (FYO Records)

Though Cuddle Magic may have taken its name from the band’s initial motive to perform quiet, unamplified music, but six years after Christopher McDonald and Ben Davis formed the band, Info Nympho, the band’s third record, finds them expanding and blossoming into a wonderfully textured, kaleidoscopic band. A twinkle of percussion here, a twist of woodwinds there, a hint of banjo, a blending of voices of different tones and genders; it’s psychedelic without necessarily being druggy. For its cheery, bright sounds, there’s a dark underbelly lurking underneath the surface. The opening “Disgrace Note” is a case in point: it lists a litany of famous suicides, as a reaction to the death of Vic Chesnutt. Compared to such an opening song, the rest of Info Nympho is mostly a mellow, upbeat affair with the arrangements and the boy-girl harmonies making for a pleasant, springtime-sounding record. Highlights include the bouncing love song “Jason,” the humorously-titled (and somewhat raw) “Moby Dickless,” sleepy-headed album closer “Again.” For Cuddle Magic, it’s all about textures and tones, and though it may seem to be a busy-sounding record, the sonic stew works quite well, and Info Nympho is nothing if not an enjoyable forty-minute listen.