The Futants / Self-Titled / Aerosol "Futant Rock" stops right at its name. This enigmatic octet prefers to deliver its namesake sound via a hefty horn section, precision percussion and conniving keys, creating some sort of living, jazz-influenced being. And while there are plenty of brooding bass clarinet lines and bopping sax bits, The Futants don't forget to inject an occasional freak-out, keeping your nerves tense and your eyes wide awake...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		The Good Life / Novena on a Nocturn / Better Looking Cursive's Tim Kasher is no stranger to cold and loneliness, as anyone who's heard the last Cursive album can attest. The songs on Novena on a Nocturn address similar concepts -- pain, disappointment, failure -- but the music is very different. These are the songs Kasher wrote "on the side" over the course of more than a decade, songs that didn't fit the Cursive formula. They're gentler, quieter and more intricately orchestrated. Notice that I didn't say "more personal". I don't think Kasher is capable of impersonal lyrics...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Hochenkeit / omu4h 4aholab / 400 boys / Road Cone Hey, what's this!?! A new CD from Hochenkeit. It's dark! It's dirgey! It's full of strange instruments and buzzing noises with no known source. I'll take it. If you're familiar with Hochenkeit's last disc, I Love You, you might be surprised to discover that this time around they've dropped most of the electronic noodling that made that album fly, in favor of more organic, acoustically-based noodling on a variety of exotic and not-so-exotic instruments...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		The Buddyrevelles / American Matador / Motorcoat The Buddyrevelles are not exactly dopeless; they make musical references to record labels Merge, Up and (ahem) Matador. In fact, they're really sort of tidy, and make strong, capable indie rock music with small surprises. The tracks are melodic -- more so than many of the better emo and indie bands to which they're frequently compared, but the Buddyrevelles maintain their muscular rock pedigree and never descend to wimpiness or lose their independent personality...more»
		Tim Hawkes / Make You Worry / Tim Hawkes Music This is a solid solo release from Hawkes, who has done time with the Underground and Warm. The opener, "Better Place", is packed with a super-fat slap bass around which the other instruments crowd for room. The album continues with this crowded feeling, like a club floor bursting with sweaty bodies, all moving to a single dominating groove. At times, such as the sexy and syncopated "Station" the mood is pure seduction...more»
		Kitty Craft / Catskills / March Valfer uses gentle-yet-bouncy percussion loops as a foundation for a variety of mellow samples -- acoustic guitars, floating pop strings and faintly psychedelic tinkling, spiced with a variety of interjections from lo-fi keyboards. But beyond the measured tempos and the scratchy seventies pop/muzak samples, there's a lot to enjoy, from "San Fran"'s brain-tickling sitar samples to "Comeback Queen"'s twinkly bell tones to "At the Charity Stripe"'s chewy analog synth accompaniment...more»
		Various Artists / Little Molly has a Treat for You / Darla/March Here's a 20-song compilation from March and Darla, two labels with a reputation for putting out satisfying and inexpensive compilations. Highlights this time around include songs by Aden, Embellish, Kitty Craft, Her Space Holiday, Baxendale, the Flashing Lights and Mascott, whose "Costume Ball" sounds pleasantly like Stars, the band that produced it. Barcelona, with Jen on vocals, also hits it big with "Studio Hair Gel"...more»
		The Orchid Pool / Mayfly / The Orchid Pool Here's another reason why you should never ignore self-released material. Mayfly, from husband and wife team Tony and Kimberly Paglia, manages to trump just about everything the much-invoked Elephant 6 collective has released this year. Mayfly is melodic. Mayfly is whimsical. And Mayfly manages to avoid being a billboard for the Paglias' most self-indulgent impulses -- no small feat for an album that features kazoos among its list of instruments...more»
		Salomé / A.M. / Dutch Courage This Chicago-by-way-of-everywhere five-piece is a different breed of band, to say the least. Their music sounds as though it was conceived in a black hole during a rift in the cosmic continuum, rather than being cobbled together in several cramped and dingy basements in a small university neighborhood. Their antecedent influences are familiar: My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Spiritualized, etc...more»
		Snog / Relax into the Abyss / Snog On this remix disc, various fiends take their turns with the duo's tracks. The results could easily be compared to the Aphex Twin, as beats skip between speakers and squiggles build into teetering towers of joy. However, unlike Richard James' studied, abstract approach, Snog's music has a strong social theme, targeting the homogeneity of consumerism and Western culture...more»