Emotionally downtrodden people appear to be making more and more music these days. At no other point in rock history has more sad bastard music (to steal a phrase from High Fidelity) existed. Go ahead and mark Kid Dakota down as yet another "turn off all the lights and cry yourself a river" kind of band, but don't write them off as perpetual self-pitying losers just yet. As unabashedly morose as So Pretty is, right down to the unfortunate little bleeding fellow on the cover, Kid Dakota stand apart because they can (and will!) rock you...from time to time.

So Pretty began life as a self-released five song EP, but it's been reissued on Low's Chairkickers Music label as an eight song full length. The three new songs mesh well with the older ones -- so much so that you'd never know they were de facto bonus tracks. "Crossin' Fingers", one of the new songs, opens the album with a bang. The depressing lull of the vocals and sparse percussion is counterbalanced by thrashing guitars and meaty production, making for a very full, decidedly not lo-fi sound. "Smokestacks", which follows, begins with an ominous take on Pinkerton-era Weezer before descending into a chorus best suited for a grunge ballad. It sounds like an odd idea, but it flows well and is never boring. Later on, "Pairin' Off" and "Coalminer" expose Kid Dakota as would-be folk singers, at once eerie and whimsical.

While it is a slow, meticulous affair, So Pretty still gets high marks for variety. The guitar sounds are particularly diverse -- sometimes crunchy, sometimes fuzzy, sometimes charming, sometimes screechy, but always effective. Great refrains seem to fly out of nowhere, as on the title track, making the music more accessible to the emotionally stable contingent of indie rockers. The lyrics, as you've probably guessed, are none too joyful, and in all honesty they don't effectively express dark themes, either. It's a bit tough to make it through an album of slow songs when it's not speaking directly to your heart, and Kid Dakota will have to realize this to expand their listenership. Fortunately, they've already got the key element -- great music -- down pat. With a little more attention to detail, they could be one of the best sad bastard bands around.

--Phillip Bucha