Hear This

The Softies
One of the most aptly named bands in the annals of indie rock, the Softies play the aural equivalent of chamomile tea spiked with arsenic. Rose Melberg and Jen Sbragia, two women with pastel electric guitars, write songs that lilt and soothe until the lyrical misery eats away the left aorta. The eggshell melodies -- barely indistinguishable from one another and fragile as hell -- have a way of blending together on both the Softies' first LP, In Love, and the current Winter Pageant. Repeated listens, and attention to Melberg's barbed lyrics and sad stories, save the songs from an easy purge.

Boring is a mean word, but suffice it to say that live, the duo makes you wish you'd brought an afghan, a cuddle partner, and a ceramic mug to hole up with in a corner. Still, what the Softies do -- without big drums or bass to hide behind -- takes guts, and the two exude an adore-us-or-leave-us charm. Just beware the poison.

-- Jeff Stark

The Softies play with Black Fork, Couch of Eureka, Original Two, and Clayton Experience on Saturday, March 8, at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman in Berkeley. Tickets are $5; call (510) 525-9926.