Pressure is Nyles Lannon's second album, and the followup to 2004's critically acclaimed Chemical Friends, which garnered him Best Album honors from the SF Bay Guardian and the Best Folktronica Artist award from SF Weekly. Lannon's sophomore effort is anything but sophomoric; this heady mix of pastoral folk melodies and ethereal electronics is a natural evolution from his earlier efforts, boldly talking the listener along on a spacey trip with Lannon as your pleasantly- eclectic tour guide, Willy Wonka in the Folktronic Factory.

As a whole, Pressure makes me think of what you might have heard if you could flip over your Garden State soundtrack and play the other side. Album opener "Hesitation"'s understated vocals and gently rolling rhythm call to mind something between The Shins and Coldplay, with songs like "Lost in the Stars" and "River" smoothly meshing a plucky Nick Drake-like vibe with an undercurrent of meandering electronic ambience. Every song on the album seems a collision between familiar and peculiar; "Next Obsession" sounds like Beck took Bill Murray's place in "Lost in Translation"; "The Well-Groomed Man" has Simon & Garfunkel gazing at their shoes; "Better With Nothing" is Radiohead scoring the new Barbarella movie. Fasten your seatbelts, and enjoy the ride.

Favorite Track: "Next Obsession"

Michael Fiegel is a freelance writer and graphic designer. His diverse background includes journalism, radio copywriting, technical writing, game design and music reviewing. He is best known as the creator of the Internet cult sensation, Ninja Burger. He can be reached at aeon@aeforge.com or at his website, www.aeforge.com.