Caw! Caw! should be more well known. Unless you were searching specifically for this review, chances are you’ve never heard of Caw! Caw!. Yet, they’ve been playing music in and around their native Chicago since 2001 and have been independently releasing their music through a 2008 EP and a MySpace music page. From what I’ve discovered in the backwaters and far corners of the internet, the band’s been winning over fans one at a time the old fashioned way: with high-energy house shows, mini-tours, and artistic sincerity. 2010’s Bummer Palace is their wildly ambitious full-length debut, a sprawling statement proclaiming the obsolescence of genre descriptors and musical boundaries.

It’s difficult to write about how Caw! Caw! move from indie rock to post-rock to pop to punk, adding flourishes of soul or ska or new wave, all with a soaring falsetto reminiscent of Sigur Ros. It’s clear that Caw! Caw! draw from an ever-growing body of influences, and I’m sure that the unfamiliar reader is probably about ready to dismiss this band as one that suffers from the sheer sum of its parts. However Caw! Caw!’s sound is remarkably cohesive and Bummer Palace is surprisingly devoid of jarring transitions.

Opener “Toothless” starts with a head-bobbing Pavement-esque rift complimented by soaring melodies and sustained notes. The track continually builds to joyful ending, divergent guitar riffs leading to a final display of melodic pop-punk.

“Sons of Sons of Saviors” follows suit, shifting from ethereal post-rock to bouncy punk rock until finally ending up somewhere between the two by the tracks closing. Bummer Palace is filled with long, epic songs; I close my eyes and visions of James Cameron’s Alien dances round in my head. And Caw! Caw! is the soundtrack playing when the aliens are heroically fought off by a gang of unusual suspects armed with lethal guitar riffs. Lyrically, Caw! Caw! overwhelm the listener with a barrage of surreal images, pulling from comic books, role-playing games and fantasy movies. All this magical geekiness is not without a knowing wink and smile, as a layer of humor and self-awareness is pivotal to the band’s style and tone. The juxtaposition between Bummer Palace’s playfulness and serious musical intensity is extremely refreshing for those tired of the familiar persona ascribed to most things “indie rock.”

“Martyrs in Ice” blends a soulful rhythm locked between drum and bass with echo-y, reverb-soaked guitars. In my first listen review I was fearful that Caw! Caw! would fall victim to their diversity in sounds, producing an album devoid of a central style. After a dozen or so listens, that fear or criticism is pretty much out the window. Bummer Palace is highly entertaining release worthy of praise. So, if you haven’t heard Caw! Caw!, now is the time to jump aboard. It’s only a matter of time before these guys receive the widespread attention and recognition they deserve.