Demo2DeRo: Caw! Caw!

October 19, 2008

BY JIM DeROGATIS POP MUSIC CRITIC

The oddly named Caw! Caw! -- vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Tim Tsurutani, drummer Evan Burrows and guitarist Steve Kozak -- has been kicking around the Chicago music scene since 2001, but it's evolved quite a bit from its earliest incarnation as a high-school punk quartet to become the gleefully tuneful, ceaselessly energetic and at times willfully naïve indie-pop outfit showcased on the new EP "Wait Outside," recently released on the independent Slanty Shanty Records.

Tunes such as "Organisms," "Escape the Red Giant" and "Wrapped Up Neat in the Bible" evoke a middle ground between those preppy popsters Vampire Weekend and the enduringly inspirational art-rockers Radiohead, though without any of the pretensions that might connote. Currently in the midst of an ambitious Midwestern tour, the band returns home for its next local gig at the Abbey Pub on Dec. 11. Meanwhile, check them out on the Web at www.myspace.com/cawcawmusic or cawcawmusic.com.