Headphone-loving romantics, pay attention. After a six-year absence, Jimmy Tamborello’s alter-ego Dntel is back, this time with Dumb Luck, his debut album for Sub Pop.

It’s unfortunate for Tamborello that his success in the Postal Service has all but eclipsed his other efforts. In reality, he has crafted some of the most thoughtful bedroom-pop tracks out there under his James Figurine and Dntel monikers. But while the focus of Figurine has always reflected a techno-pop sensibility, Tamborello’s incredibly occasional work as Dntel is a quieter, more understated affair.

Dumb Luck consists of just under 10 polite four-to-five-minute tracks. The music itself alternates between a more accessible version of the fuzzed-out, chaotic compositions of Fennesz, psychedelics milder than Animal Collective, and something that would fit nicely on Berlin’s number-one laptop rock label Morr. It also consists largely of collaborative work, which is par for the course for Tamborello. Rilo Kiley’s Jenny Lewis, Valerie Trebelijahr and Markus Acher (Lali Puna), and Christopher and Jennifer Gunst (Mystic Chords of Memory) all contribute. The Postal Service will probably always pay the bills for Tamborello, but what he produces on this record seems both more personal and more personable.

Dumb Luck is out April 24, 2007 on Sub Pop.

Cameron Octigan

Photo by Robin Laananen

Tracklisting
1. Dumb Luck
2. To a Fault
3. I’d Like to Know
4. Roll On
5. The Distance
6. Rock My Boat
7. Natural Resources
8. Breakfast in Bed