Chicago's Distractions have put together a whopper of a debut release. It's not necessarily a whopper size-wise (only 8 tunes), but the sonic territory that they cover, and they way that they cover it, is huge.

From baritone croons that remind us a little bit of Calvin Johnson to falsetto lines that soar and swoop and twist, frontman Tom Owens' vocals are not merely a conduit for lyrics but also a powerful piece of orchestration in their own right. The tunes also evoke an atmosphere that's akin to the syrupy, laid-back mood of Broken Social Scene's debut, You Forgot It in People. And there is (somewhat strangely but nonetheless endearingly) a bit of that post-punkishness which must inevitably seep in your music when you live in a city where Touch & Go Records once ruled the roost.

Distractions' self-titled debut, which is out now on cassette via Plustapes, will be released on LP soon by Infinite Best, the label that put out Twin Sister's awesome Color Your Life. Twin Sister's Udbhav Gupta will be mixing and mastering the LP release, so we're sure it will sound even sweeter than it already does.

Tonight the band plays at Union Pool with Golden Bones and Drew Victor. Tomorrow they will be at Pianos with Aux Arc, Sunglasses, Psychobuildings, Magic Man and Rudely Interrupted.

Listen to Distractions' "All Night" below.

Distractions - "All Night" [Download]