The Stage Names Grade: A

Attention friends: You need this one. \nOkkervil River is a six-man outfit led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff that merges rock's energy with both lo-fi acoustic and grand operatic sounds. But the band members distinguish themselves by not merely wearing their hearts on their sleeves, but by virtually plucking them out and flinging them into the audience -- no abstract images or quirky stories here, just Sheff's howl of pain toward the heavens. This is, of course, rather melodramatic -- but Okkervil River shows just enough restraint to keep it convincing, achieving emo-like emotional release without resorting to its shopworn musical and lyrical tricks.\nThe Stage Names manages to surpass even 2005's excellent Black Sheep Boy in aesthetics and ambition -- making it one of this year's best indie-rock records. \nThis is, to no small extent, due to Sheff's extraordinary lyrics, which tell vivid stories by blurring the line between his characters and the media in their lives -- most strikingly, in "Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe" and "A Hand to Take Hold of the Scene," which express a wish to control life like it was a film or TV show (respectively), and in "Plus Ones" and "John Allyn Smith Sails," which incorporate familiar songs into their larger narratives. But all this eggheadery would mean little were it not for Okkervil River's stunning instrumentation, which takes everything from the ringing anthem of "Our Life" to the shuffling, downcast beauty of "A Girl in Port," and sends it vibrating down your spine. \nIf Okkervil River suffered from success before, now it's truly doomed.