The eponymous debut by Lafayette’s Givers may be short at 23 minutes— four songs and a remix—but that brief record is packed with more ebullience than any indie rock sourpuss can withstand. “Up Up Up” is as sweet and intoxicating as a pricey Chinese restaurant cocktail in a novelty glass. Everything about the song screams “Up!” The hits of the misfit’s prom are “Meantime” and “Saw You First.” They’re jumpy, flush with excitement and bouncing in a circle with hands in the air. In a word, fun. “Ceiling of Plankton” reveals the group’s range. It is a hallucinatory epic of dazzling lights and varying degrees of Afro-pop effervescence. The remix of “Up Up Up” at the end is a go-cup of jungle juice from the record as a whole with dub and rave strategies snaking the song through a cicada chatter of handclaps. There is nary a still moment in this short record, but then this is a busy band with a lot of love to give. myspace.com/giversmusic
Essential tracks: “Up Up Up,” “Ceiling of Plankton”
Recommended if you like: Architecture in Helsinki, Katrina and the Waves, the Tilt-O-Whirl at a parking lot fair.
