Patton Oswalt joked that Austin was one of those cities that lives in a magical bubble that protects its residents from the chaos and the muck that surrounds them (“You mean I can’t pay for a sandwich with a song?”), and this five-track EP by playful electronic enthusiasts Octopus Project, their first effort since 2007’s Hello, Avalanche, bears that out. Leadoff song “Wet Gold” rocks a Theremin and boy-girl vocals to a beat that Stereolab would have killed for, but the band launches a full-on guitar assault on follow-up track “Moon Boil.” They finish the EP with three instrumentals (!), ranging from trippy (“Rorol”) to pogo-tastic (the Death Cab-esque “Wood Trumpet”). It’s the work of a band with a love for all things pop but a healthy disregard for all things popular. Lord knows we could use a few more bands like that these days. Peek-a-Boo 2009

Octopus Project MySpace page