Phosphorescent's The Weight of Flight is instantly impressive and unpredictable, tugging at the very heartstrings of musical sensibility. Fans of Bedhead, Okkervil River and Will Oldham are bound to be impressed by Matthew Houck's hearty determination; in fact, it seems his calling to push indie-folk ever forward.

The results are truly stirring: as a whole, the EP inspires an emotional wash. Houck begins with the stark, intimate plodding of "Toes Out to Sea," where a hopeless heart serves as a prelude of things to come. "All of It All" brightens and unfurls from there, warming up in dense layers of brushed organ.

Hurt but looking up, he leads to the faultless apex, "When We Fall." A curious down-home carnival of sound, it proves the EP smartly farcical and serves as the fever dream by which dull lives fall short.

This bizarre and unattainable instant rolls perfectly into a battered rendition of "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys." Houck's interpretation of the Willie Nelson classic could barely be more inspired; it crashes to the lowest low after such an absurd climactic moment. Its busted, spent misery weighs everything back down to earth; its placement aggravates all those ironic realities that crawl under the skin.

Afterwards, the organs seem more chilled, the lyrics more beaten and the doubt more stinging. The final two tracks are bleary-eyed and desperate, and while horns and tempos rise in hopes of a sudden upswing, no glimmering flash is as dazzling as the dream. The Weight of Flight ends on a broken note, seeking salvation or at least escape. Seldom does 29 minutes of music feel so moving.