The Channel, Golden Bear

Fans of Beulah still stinging from their break-up two years ago would be wise to check out the pairing of Golden Bear and the Channel, two Austin groups that share that band's killer songcraft and So-Cal pop sensibilities. Five members pull double duty between the two, with Golden Bear recalling the fuzzed-out psych-pop of mid-'90s Flaming Lips or Grandaddy (aided on their self-titled debut by fellow Austinite Pink Nasty, who nearly steals the show with the buoyant country-pop of "The Saddest Songs"), while the Channel mines a sadder, country-tinged vein of the same sun-dappled genre--complete with Fruit Bat hooks and Beach Boy harmonies. For warm summer sounds, there's no better bill around.