Still, the music is on the rise: for every backwoods group of musicians like Feathers, there are equally beguiling bands like Lavender Diamond, which is based in Los Angeles and engaged a publicity firm before even making a full album. This summer kindred bands like the darkly pastoral Espers, the gorgeously lyrical Vetiver, the raging Comets on Fire, the entrancing Six Organs of Admittance, the boogie-rocking Howlin Rain, the molasses-grooved Brightblack Morning Light, the computer-enhanced Tunng, the improvisatory Wooden Wand and the noisily experimental Grizzly Bear are all releasing CD’s, as are others “” Jolie Holland, Ane Brun, Cibelle, Juana Molina and M. Ward “” less connected to the scene but reflecting its aesthetics. And that’s not to mention promising artists like Alela Diane who are popping up almost daily on Internet showcases.

Read the full article on the Freak Folk in this Saturday’s New York Times (login req’d).