Cult Following

The sophomore album by Laurel Sprengelmeyer (a.k.a. Little Scream) works in mysterious ways. Sparked in part by the Montrealer’s past experience as a Jehovah’s Witness, Cult Following will overcome you in ways both spiritual (the country lullaby “Evan” and “Wreckage,” with its spare harmonics, reckon with devoutness and its aftermath) and physical (the transcendent funk of the sinewy “Love as a Weapon” commands thee to dance). Lush, textured backdrops mirror the lyrics’ layered epiphanies. She’s not a cult leader, but Sprengelmeyer’s music inspires fierce devotion.