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Prince Rama, ‘Top Ten Hits of the End of the World’

Prince Rama's new LP is posed as a compilation of hit singles by imaginary bands that died during the Dec. 21, 2012, apocalypse. The sister duo behind Prince Rama, which got its start in Boston, crafted bios and even donned costumes for photo shoots of the made-up musicians. All this sounds like the making of an absurd jumble of a project. Thankfully, Prince Rama kept most of the silliness confined to the marketing. The album is consistent in its Eastern-minded psych-pop, and aside from a few flourishes to distinguish the "bands" — goth synths in "Receive," a song supposedly by a German architect band called Taohaus, for example — it sounds like the effort of a single group. "So Destroyed," which has Prince Rama channeling a crew of protest rockers called Rage Peace, shows off the band's strong suits with a bubbly hop and Krishna-inspired chants. For an apocalyptic vision, "Hits" is rather upbeat, its only apparent sense of doomsday coming from the cavernous vocals. And that's OK: Prince Rama's success here is that it never totally gives in to the hook.
(Out Tuesday)

ESSENTIAL "So Destroyed"

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Andrew Doerfler can be reached at andrew.doerfler@globe.com