Record labels today often use movie soundtracks to pimp out newly signed acts they hope are poised for success. Marjorie Fair, for instance, first made a national splash on the soundtrack to the 2003 Mandy Moore romance How to Deal, thanks to a cozy wool-blanket nugget called "Waves." Then the Los Angeles quartet seemed to disappear from sight, even as rough demos of its major-label debut landed in the hands of journalists. Self-Help Serenade -- the oft-delayed album that was released last year overseas and is finally out here in late June -- was certainly worth the wait. Sounding like the product of laid-back hippies gathered 'round the campfire to strum Coldplay and Beatles covers, the folk-tinged disc should satisfy fans of molasses-viscous slo-core and feather-light Britpop shoegazers.
