Dusty Rhodes and the River Band

With a name straight out of A Mighty Wind and a sound straight out of The Survival Guide for Kids with ADD or ADHD, Dusty Rhodes and the River Band are a perplexing addition to the indie big-band ranks. On "Blind Lead the Blind," the strongest cut from this year's Palace and Stage, scrappy shouter Dustin Apodaca begs to know, "Whatever happened to De La Soul and D.A.I.S.Y. Age?" Gangsta is the obvious answer, as is the inexorable forward progression of time, a concept somewhat foreign to this Fullerton, California, sextet, whose idea of musical evolution is to overdrive and overlay pop styles until Thin Lizzy sounds like Oasis, and Flogging Molly sounds like the Decemberists. But the band's talent is more than enough to convey a fun and surprisingly fresh spirit.