Bellwether – Seven And Six / Missing Numbers – Self-Titled

Minneapolis folk-rockers Bellwether say they havent split, preferring instead the term hiatus. Regardless, its hard not to hear Seven And Six as their last gasp. Recorded nearly two years ago and self-released as an afterthought, the bands fourth disc finds Eric Luomas wistful, sleepy tenor set mostly to downtempo tunes, the mellow mood recalling the bands 2002 disc Home Late. And the similarities dont stop there; the likes of Half Life and Catalina come off as Luoma outtakes (to be generous) or self-plagiarism (to be blunt).

On the bright side, the latter tune, an otherwise nondescript strummer, does boast a rhyming couplet so perfect its hard to believe no ones thought of it before: Youre up in Minnesota/Do you have someone to hold ya/When its cold? Theres also a little Jayhawks jangle (This Time) and a lo-fi dose of Joe Henry faux-funk (St. Helena), but in the end, such slight deviations from the norm dont equate to breaking new ground and, as another North Star song-smith said, he not busy being born is busy dying.

Bellwether guitarist Jimmy Peterson, meanwhile, is already on the rebound; his new band the Missing Numbers have a self-titled debut produced by Ed Ackerson. A four-piece that includes former Dashboard Saviors drummer John Crist and a hotshot named Casey Gooby on guitar, the Missing Numbers owe significantly less to acoustic twang than electric blues, and this discs eight songs evoke smoky nightspots and dark alleys more than rickety porches or lonesome plains.

From the top, the smoldering lead line and deeply reverbed vocals of The Red And The Black suggest the Missing Numbers prize moody atmosphere over catchy hooks. The pattern follows from there, varying only in terms of tempo and in guitar tone, where Gooby is the star. His six strings kick loose shards of scree on Sleep, trace shimmering circles in the sludge of Automatic, and deliver a brain-melting solo on Luv.

Its all very far from Bellwether, which makes the split seem sensible. But Petersons first effort at the helm doesnt offer much more than that mood. He could use more detailed, distinctive songs not just sounds next time out.

Luomas admirers, meanwhile, will wish for Bellwethers ashes to yield yet another new act. It was, after all, a Minnesota songwriter who fashioned a hit single from the words of Seneca, the Roman sage: Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings end.