On "False Idols, " the dreamy orchestralstrings that enrich "Nothing's Changed, " sung by Francesca Belmonte, began as an experiment with a synth sound, as did the song's skippy drum loop.
Vincent, Merrill Garbus's Tune-Yards and Laura Marling, who added a cello and brass to her retro-folk sound, presented polished, high-concept chamber pop, as did Other Lives, who impressed with melodramatic baroque folk featuring strings, orchestral synths and vocal harmonies in support of the quietly charismatic singer Jesse Tabish.