Influenced by the sweet jangly spell of early R.E.M., 1984’s The Happy Forest is the lone 12″ mini-album from Chicago-based outfit The Reverbs. A duo featuring underground pop stalwart Ric Menck (Velvet Crush, The Springfields), the spirited track “Trusted Woods” was previously the launching off point of the archival Captured Tracks compilation Strum & Thrum, surveying the era’s understated guitar-pop landscape. With chiming guitars, sparse production and reverb-drenched vocals, the record simultaneously recalls the essential Byrds jangle and then contemporaries from both coasts, such as neo-psychedelia of the Paisley Underground’s Rain Parade.