World Leader Pretend, Punches (Warner Bros)

Local alternative rockers World Leader Pretend move onto a major label with their sophomore effort, Punches. And judging from the sound, the band has taken full advantage of the recording opportunities that major-label clout can yield. Punches sounds like a collaboration between the members of Radiohead and Coldplay with Phil Spector manning the consoles. The latter is especially evident in the jingling bells that augment most of the tracks; you don’t get much more Spector-esque than that unless you’re doing a Christmas album. But the entire album is a tour-de-force of production, each song soaked in lush orchestration and wall-of-sound overdubs. Of course, none of this would mean a thing if the songs themselves were lousy. But that’s certainly not the case here. What amazes me the most is how World Leader Pretend jumps from one mood and tempo to another between each song. The melancholy “The Masses” leads into “Tit for Tat,” which sounds as quirky and whimsical as anything from the Harry Nilsson songbook. And from there we go into the hardest-rocking song on the album, “B.A.D.A.B.O.O.M.” This is how Punches keeps its listeners interested, just as World Leader Pretend keeps its audiences begging for more with their amazing, atmospheric sound.