Todd Thibaud

SQUASH

(Self-released)

Todd Thibaud hasn't learned that maturity, depth, and beauty are no longer hip in music-biz land, and this nicely crafted disc has them all in spades. Hooks, too. "Sacred" -- about slipping idealism, a recurring theme here -- benefits from rich eddies of guitar, a gliding vocal melody, an anthemic chorus, and this Bostonian's typically smart wordsmithing. Actually, just about every song does. There's a superb cast of players as well, including guitarists Thomas Juliano (of Talking to Animals) and Rick Harris (of Knots and Crosses) and drummer Phil Antoniades. Thibaud's warm not-quite-tenor singing is full of wriggly phrasing that underscores the soul-searching nature of these dozen songs. And when all these positives line up, as they do in the back-to-back run of "By Degrees," "Wonderful Again," and "After All," his mastery becomes obvious. (This disc is available at www.toddthibaud.com.)

-- Ted Drozdowski