Branching out from the
Postal Service-like acoustic guitar plus laptop sound of
Hanalei's debut, singer/songwriter Brian Moss built a full band around himself for
Parts and Accessories. The change does him good: this is a far more enjoyable and less derivative-sounding album than
We Are All Natural Disasters, filled with energetic indie rock songs beholden to no particular subgenre. Hints of alt-country (like the steel guitar parts in "Chamomile" and "Gyres"),
Pink Floyd-like space rock (the pleasantly atmospheric "The Hand"), and sardonic power pop ("MLK, You're OK") flit through the songs. Indeed, the least successful tunes are those that hold closest to the style and form of
Hanalei's debut, like the heavy-handed closer, "Cynics Anthem for a New Tomorrow." Unfortunately, Moss broke up the full-band lineup of
Hanalei shortly after this album's release, when he left Chicago to move back to his hometown of Oakland. ~ Stewart Mason