Game boys

When your so-called backing band is prone to the distasteful habit of malfunctioning right in the middle of a song, it's probably time to start shopping for a new, slightly more dependable crew. Or, in singer-songwriter Jason Crawford's case, actual people.

Up until about a year ago, Crawford was little more than a one-man band with a dream and a Nintendo Game Boy, a guy who had self-released a snarky little pop record called "How to Make Millions in Real Estate," for which he had written, sung, played, recorded, engineered, and mixed every single note and verse. When the album's snazzy hooks and underdog charm (think the Rentals crossed with Brendan Benson with a dash of Nada Surf ) caught unsuspecting ears by pleasant surprise, Crawford knew it might be a good idea to capitalize on the buzz by playing some shows. Trouble was, he didn't have a band. That's where the Game Boy came in.

"I'd [scored] music for video games before, and because I didn't have a backing band at the time, I thought it would be really cool to do a show with this Game Boy I had," recalls Crawford by cellphone from Manhattan, where he's spent most of his life after being born in Auburn-Lewiston, Maine. He successfully re-created the album's songs on the contraption and performed live, using the game console as his backing band. "It was cool and fun, but [the Game Boy] would always crash once or twice during a performance, sometimes right in the middle of a song."

Eventually, the novelty wore off for Crawford, who's since recruited two living, breathing human beings -- single-monikered multi-instrumentalist Amos and drummer Jon Weber -- into the Grey Does Matter fold. "I wanted to bring other people into it -- I didn't want to do a 'drum machine' record again, which is basically what the first one was," says Crawford, who'll bring his band to the Abbey Lounge on Thursday. "These are great people, and they're the right people for this band."

Grey Does Matter's just-released sophomore effort, "Your Job Will Kill You," is a resounding affirmation of Crawford's declaration, and proof that the fledgling songwriter's terrific debut wasn't a fluke. Working with an outside producer for the first time and recording in a real studio has only sharpened the hooks and brightened the melodies Crawford clearly has a knack for writing.

"My big worry was that with the sonic upgrade, I was going to lose what I liked about the first record," Crawford says. "The first record's got tons of stuff that people would never leave on -- I'm singing out of tune in some places, there's some guitar screw-ups, and the mix isn't superpro or anything. But it's very honest, and it's very raw. I didn't want to lose the sound of Grey Does Matter just because we were coming into a really nice recording studio. The idea was to keep the spirit of a four-track record alive but make it sound really big at the same time. For the most part, I think we achieved that goal."

That's thanks in part to what Crawford describes as Weber's "super rock 'n' roll" drumming and Amos's inventive streak and penchant for utilizing odd instruments. The latter plays an oscillator solo on "Rake Your Leaves" and employs the "hybrid," a homemade instrument whose top three strings are piccolo bass strings tuned to a guitar register and played through a guitar amplifier. The low string is the bass string, with a bass pickup running to a bass amplifier.

"Amos actually plays guitar parts and bass parts at the same time, so when you see us live, it sounds like two guitars playing," Crawford says. "We've had people who come up to us who say they were 25 minutes into watching a show before they realized there weren't two guitars."

With a distribution deal with the major label Fontana/Universal , the chances are good that "Your Job Will Kill You" (out on the band's own Pop Rally! Records imprint) will reach far more people than its predecessor. Already, the disc's been getting raves from the likes of Spin and Pitchfork , not to mention countless other webzines, where word of Grey Does Matter's music first spread .

Crawford claims he's "shocked" by the positive response and wasn't sure people would "get it." But what's not to get?

There's a fresh exuberance and New Pornographers/Fountains of Wayne -ish snap, crackle, and pop to "Your Job Will Kill You," especially on tracks such as "Life From Under" and "Unlimited Fun Shine." The band's most striking moment, though, arrives on "Gatehouse," the album's lone ballad, in which childhood and domesticity aren't what they seem and rosy nostalgia is shaded by a corrupted innocence, the palpable sense that something's been lost forever.

All of which brings us, finally, to the band's name. "Things aren't so black- and- white in life," Crawford says. "Why does a happy lyric have to go with a happy sound? That's not the way life is."

BITS & PIECES. Tonight Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson headlines Johnny D's. The Classic Ruins are at the Abbey Lounge. The Asa Brebner Band is at Toad. Tomorrow Broken River Prophet is at P.A.'s Lounge. The Stumbleweeds are at the Plough and Stars. Sunday The Pernice Brothers top the second night of "Hot Stove Cool Music" festivities, on a bill that also features Kay Hanley, the Downbeat 5, Eli "Paperboy" Reed , and more. Monday Metric's Emily Haines brings her band, the Soft Skeleton , to the Paradise Rock Club . Tuesday Michael Tarbox continues his a monthlong residency at the Plough and Stars. Session Americana does the same at the Lizard Lounge. Wednesday Ron Sexsmith is at T.T. the Bear's Place with newcomer Kim Taylor opening. Thursday Helms tops a Middle East Upstairs bill that includes Black Helicopter . Kris Delmhorst is at the Lizard Lounge (Friday too). Jabe is at Toad.