**1/2 Ultrababyfat

SILVER TONES SMILE

(Velvel)

Invoking the sacred tradition of Southern rock (that is, the post-R.E.M./Swimming Pool Q's variety), these Atlanta hopefuls with the eccentric name concoct engaging, edgy guitar pop. Although guitarists/songwriters Shomali Bhowmik and Michelle DuBois certainly acknowledge their college-rock forebears (i.e., Throwing Muses), they remain faithfully forward-thinking, crafting lush harmonies in a tangle of unassuming yet dynamic instrumental work. Recording the 13-track album at Memphis's Easley Studios gives Silver Tones Smile an organic vibe that holds up through moments alternately quirky ("What He Said," the horn-and-percussion-powered "Jonesin' "), ethereal (the hypnotic "Water"), garagy ("St. Augustine," "100 Watts"), and unexpected (the Indian-seasoned "Peacock Throne"). As alterna-rock femmes, they can be demure ("Twist") or dangerous ("Girls have burned for less than what I plan to do with a man like you," they vow on "Salem"), and they're confidently seductive in either guise.

-- Mark Woodlief