Sea of Noise

While St. Paul & The Broken Bones' second album keeps one foot in the dynamic, '60s soul-indebted sound that made their debut such a revelation, it moves in some new directions too. There are more overtly funky grooves this time around, like the ones on the Curtis Mayfield-flavored "Flow with It (You Got Me Feeling Like)" and the postmodern good-foot grabber "Midnight on the Earth." But there's also a distinct inching toward indie pop, as on the rocker "La Bruit" and the outsized, orchestrated "Brain Matter."