Blue Line Highway – Almost Reel

Tremendous guitar artistry greets the ear from Richmond, Virginia’s quartet, Blue Line Highway’s newest disc, “Almost Reel” – a folk-rock mixture of Americana, Southern acoustic blues, and coffeehouse pop that gets your toes tapping and your head nodding in agreement and enjoyment.

McCabe & Mrs. Miller – Time For Leaving

The duo is comprised of Victor Krummenacher (Camper Van Beethoven) and Alison Faith Levy (The Sippy Cups, The Loud Family). Their debut “Time for Leaving” blends vocal duets with a stirred up branch off of the signature sounds of country, pop, blues, folk, and roots rock.

Libby Johnson – Perfect View

Libby does her best Aimee Mann impression without being an outright thief, stirring her own recipe for adult alternative pop and singer/songwriter with a perfect jazz backdrop.

Kristine Mills -  Bossanovafied

The untrained ear may not recognize bossa nova as anything different from contemporary or modern jazz but they’re missing the piano styles, samba-influenced rhythm guitar, and underlying percussion inspired from the Brazilian artform. Don’t miss out on what far too many Americans dismiss as “elevator music”, because talent like this transcends genres; Mills voice is divine.

The Villains – The Villains

The Villains are bland alt-rock and countrified pop pancake that’s burnt on both edges and would take an entire bottle of maple syrup to get through.

Lloyd’s Garage – From the Comfort of Your Home

Stripped down indie rock ‘n’ roll that wants hard to sound like something coming out from the late ‘60s and early ‘70s garage rock scene. They miss with an album that is a little too lo-fi and gritty for the loud punch sound that they really were striving for, not to mention they feature some of the worst distortion I’ve ever heard used intentionally on a guitar on several of the tracks. Bummer.

Lorus – Byzantine

Chicago’s Lorus is an instrumental amalgam of progressive rock, sludge, and metal. “Byzantine” picks up right where their last endeavor, “Deluge” left off. Progressive and dynamic music for drug-addled punks? Yes probably!

Exilium – A Black Vicious Path

Thrash metal from a duo in Italy that can’t sing or write a good riff to save their lives. Et tu brute!?

Fago Sepia – Aposiopese

French quartet Fago Sepia write energetic free-form progressive instrumental musical paragraphs that employ math-rock rhythms, avant-post rock nuance, and angular guitars. I like it.

EOTO – Fire the Lazers!!!

EOTO consists of an electronic-minded music duo that takes live drumming, vocals, keyboards, bass, and guitar, and then guides it through a labyrinth of effects and studio wizardry to create a sound that is part dubstep, house, and electro. Very intriguing and a great listen.

David Widelock Trio – Skating on the Sidewalk

Bay Area jazz guitarist David Widelock unleashes another smart free-form improvisational jazz treat that is heavy in the funk with elements of Latin jazz percolating to the top. Nice.

Anson Wright – Ukiah’s Lullaby

Guitar-centric jazz that is brilliantly refined and crafted; love the gorgeous tone and lovely melodies.

Lullwater – Forest For the Trees

Quick hard rock EP from Athens, Georgia based outfit Lullwater that false starts with a  puke out of the same hard rock pop fodder that Nickelback on the album’s intro and then dashes away into the bushes of introspective alternative rock. So if they just nuke “A Forgotten Name” off this EP, they have a winner.

Mark Matos & Os Beaches – Words of the Knife

Psych-pop with sunny brilliant melodies, sandy harmonies, and murky ‘70s funky rock chords, Mark Matos & Os Beaches blend it all into one heartfelt jam that the whole family can get into.

Johannes Linstead – Mistico

Exploration of the Spanish guitar by a virtuoso is something any true guitarist should be listening to. I’m a drummer and I still can have my face melted by Johannes Linstead. Nice.

Latent Anxiety – Reaction

Fortunately for this band, it is a solo act – therefore there is only one person to point the finger at and blame for this horrid mistake for an album.

Latent Anxiety – Perception

My “Perception” of this collection of songs, is merely a “Reaction” to the above terrible mistake.

Chuck & Albert – Energie

Discover Prince Edward Island’s French connection with the new album by Chuck & Albert that celebrates quirk storytelling, tall tales, and untraditional Quebec tunes. Oh did I mention the immense amount of laughter contained within?

Lita Ford – Wicked Wonderland

Heavy metal’s goddess Lita Ford has aged well. While her “Wicked Wonderland” is the first new full-length since ’95, she’s just as sultry and heavy as ever, rocking out with as much metallic glean as possible.

Abaji – Origine Orients

Lebanese multi-instrumentalist Abaji writes blues that is rooted in global world-beat, a melting pot of eccentric instruments, folklore, and earnest songwriting. Truly inspiring.

MarchFourth Marching Band – Rise Up

The circus is in town with this crazy marching band featuring flamenco skirts, stilt walkers, a brass band, various percussionists, and a band that is all decked out in exotic costumes. Oh did I mention that they roll up in a fire engine? That’s just one way they’ve made an entrance, the band seems to always take their DIY performance spirit to the next level. Musically it’s across the map with a centric focus on New Orleans’ performance art.

Toto La Momposina – La Bodega

Dusty Colombian indigenous music that was mixed with African slave hymns, and sultry brass band Latin-jazz composes the bulk of “La Bodega”’s excellent composition. Perfect.

Derecho – Dropped at 10,000 Feet

Sublime melodies and dark imagery comprise this surprising fun-filled lo-fi indie pop gem. Smart and intelligent lyrics are pureed with bittersweet melodies and lovely backdrops of harmonious guitars and vocals.

Brainswarm – Brainswarm

A quick EP of ghoully late ‘80s modern rock alternative, Brainswarm sounds like a bit Zombiefied but it isn’t. Perfect pick for this Halloween though.

Kathy Greenholdt – Lowly Violet

Lyrically astute Americana folk from an intelligent middle-aged woman’s perspective; a welcome change to the suddenly male-dominated genre.

Destroyah – Disc of the Damned

‘80s influenced pop from Honolulu that’s easily shrugged off and ignored.

CoCoComa – Things Are Not All Right

Rough and tumble garage indie pop with punk flakes and spazzy guitar chords, “Things Are Not All Right” would put the Super in Superchunk but they do so much more than that armed with their organ harmonies and smart lyricism.

Secrets of the Moon – Privilegivm

Spending three years recording and penning this epic black metal opus, Secrets of the Moon dominates with an ultra heavy backdrop that is surprisingly melodic and rockin’ against a caustic wail of distorted screams and ambient soundscapes. Scary stuff.

The Scruffs – Conquest

Power pop from Memphis, The Scruffs turn in their 5^th record, “Conquest”, having been together since ’77 and apparently unable to really ever break through. There’s talent there but perhaps not enough drive to take it to the next level of musicianship and songwriting.

The Bronzed Chorus – I’m the Spring

North Carolina duo of guitar and drums The Bronzed Chorus sounds like a flippin’ rock orchestra of layered soundscapes and post rock joy. Grand.

Flying Machines – Flying Machines

Intellectual classic rock that boasts a mix done by the same guy (Tom Weir) who has worked bands as diverse as Weezer, No Doubt, and Tom Morello? Yes. And then some. Flying Machines write crafty songs that are alternative rockers to all the throw-away pop that is played in the mainstream coupled with lyrical smartness.

Boy Genius – Staggering

Two acoustic dudes that like to write fun love-soaked pop with plenty of intriguing loops, samples, field recordings, feedback, and layers of instrumentation, Bog Genius is a charming outfit that everyone should take very serious.

Cesaria Evora – Nha Sentimento

Imagine overcoming a revolution, being stricken with extreme poverty, and then get hit with a stroke to become one of the most famous world music artists out of her homeland of Cape Verde? Well Cesaria Evora has all of the above on her renowned resume and adds another beautiful exploration of Arabic traditions into blues music with her fantastic “Nha Sentimento”.

The Helm – Home

Abrasive and abusive hardcore that is rich in crushing egos and crusty hardcore rock. Completing the circle with surprising transitions and smashing breaks, The Helm is a yet another reason that hardcore music continues to produce surprising and invigorating music.

Collapsar – Beyond the Event Horizon

Dark ambient soundscapes range and collide forming a microcosm of sound that is far from safe and far from boring; drone collages, layered darkness, and a journey of deep space keeps “Beyond the Event Horizon” challenging and intriguing all at once.

Gary B & the Notions – A New Twist & Shout

Baltimore’s Gary B. focuses his singer/songwriter sights on Elvis Costello and Television producing “A New Twist & Shout” that Chuck Berry would be proud of – indeed pop songs that boast that delicious melodic gravy that so many artists search an eternity to find.

My First Failure – My First Failure

Bland German hardcore that is yet more gasoline poured on the eternal flame of lame. There’s some talent here, but it’s hard to get at among all of the clichés and forgettable tunes.

Tom McBride & the Whig Party – Like a Lion

Indie alternative pop that shrugs aside notions that because it’s “indie” it has to sound small. “Like a Lion” boasts hauntingly familiar pop hooks and catchy harmonies amid smart songwriting and penmanship surrounded by a big band sound fit for a soulman like Bruce Springsteen.

Dr. Rage & the Uppercuts – Sexus Diablo

‘70s era swanky rock ‘n’ roll that is guitar first and foremost and then some. Bluesy rock with whiskey soaked vocals that call out to all the babydolls in the house while rockin’ a jean jacket and tight fitting leather pants set to bring the local dive bar do its knees.

Ventana – American Survival Guide Vol. 1

Industrial nu-metal from the idiots in Mushroomhead that steal from Slipknot. Enough said.

Various Artists – Saw VI Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Yes it is exactly as you’d expect this c-movie soundtrack to sound like – lame metal bands with a few good ones interspersed with a whole lot of throw-away. Converge’s “Dark Horse”, Nitzer Ebb’s “Never Known”, and a couple other tracks are the only worth entries on this eighteen track long nuisance.

Outbreak – Outbreak

Fast and full-blown post-punk/hardcore that has enough melody to keep the scenesters interested while boasting so much crusty crackling hardcore breakdowns that even tried and true hardcore kids who only listen to 7” vinyl would perk up a bit. Think a newer Agnostic Front with a firm nod in the direction of Madball and NYC hardcore in general.

Nommo Ogo – Across Time and Space

Alaska is not what one would immediately associate with psychedelic noise, though perhaps the bleak landscape filled with moronic politicians that desperately cling onto their MILF status is the perfect setting for a group like Nommo Ogo. Having been together since 1996, the group has performed alongside such luminaries as Wolves in the Throne Room. “Across Time and Space” finds the band exploring Krautrock, industrial opuses, and agnostic soundscapes of surreal and dark pleasures. Interesting.

Road – Long Player

Wow the ‘70s called and they want everything back. You are not allowed to play rock, thanks.

Hunters, Run! – EP2

A quick two-song EP that is the second in a series of four consecutive 7”s, that dot the I’s and cross the T’s on this New York City-based post-pop group. Magnetic melodies that recall Husker Du with lyrics that could have been penned by Elvis Costello. Only 200 physical copies are out there folks, so get this limited gem while you still can! Peep the MP3 of “If I had Half a Chance”.

Definite Spaces – Patterns that Matter

Indie pop trio Definite Spaces hail from San Francisco and recall neatly packaged emotional rock from the mid to late ‘90s. The songs are very stripped down and easy to listen, but also are easy to forget without any particular melody or harmony sticking with you. Watch them closely, there is definitely something here.

Black Friday ‘29 – 2009

Aggro-hardcore from European hardcore outfit Black Friday ’29 unleashes a torrential downpour of spite, aggressive nuance, and pumping fists. Anthems abound!

The Cassidy Scenario – Withstanding Voracity

The Austrian landscape of melodic hardcore is small in scope but heavy on quality; The Cassidy Scenario is one proof positive of why everyone’s eyeballs should be trained on that. Recommended if you like, Comeback Kid or Above this Fire or you know, freakin’ good hardcore.

Mia Vermillion – Alone Together with the Blues

Blues standards with female vocals that are one two-step away from being classics. Nicely done.

Brenda Earle – Songs for a New Day

Grand jazz-pop with sultry style and a firm grasp on what constitutes the makeup of a great jazz standard with covers of Marc Anthony, Keane, Cole Porter, and Crowded House.

The Yes Pleases – From Whence It Came

The Yes Pleases are really a “No Thank You” that should go back to “From Whence It Came”. I can do without this sort of wannabe quirky indie pop, thanks.

Ocote Soul Sounds – Coconut Rock

Martin Perna was one of the foremost musicians responsible for reviving the Afrobeat sound as part of a fifteen-piece collective in the Big Apple; “Coconut Rock” finds Martin employing funk and soul with Latin American fusions and rhythms.

Destination: Oblivion – The Phoenix

“The Phoenix” isn’t even a guilty pleasure and when you mention that the album is adding elements of “emo, dj, trance, and progressive” you figure there’s gotta be something there that you would never admit to liking but that you secretly jam out to when no one is around. Nope. The only guilty pleasure is figuring out how to mock it better than the next guy. Here’s my swag at it: “Forget the Holocaust, this is the worst thing that mankind has ever done to one another.”

The Sexy Accident – Mantoloking

Chunky guitars crunch with crackling melodic vocals humming bars of harmonies underneath an engulfing wave of oceanic delight and power pop saltiness. Neat and organized indie pop from Kansas City’s The Sexy Accident.

Katastrophe – The Worst Amazing

Katastrophe’s third full-length is a rangy indie hip-hop album for hip suburbanites who steer clear of much of the lame BET fodder but like their beats bouncy and their lyrics poignant and intelligent. Peep the video for “The Life”.

Drum Dynasty – Drum Dynasty

Ambient percussionists Arturo Rodriguez, Marco Zonka, and Bruce Burgess join forces with film composer Kevin Christensen to blend an interesting mix of new age world rhythms into a two-disc collection of rhythm. Intriguing.

Final Gravity – Final Gravity

Really who didn’t covet the great ‘80s hair bands and early ‘90s rockers? While Final Gravity is certainly far removed from Van Halen, they have the ferocious beer coveting that Eddie and the gang were known for. Good tunes, perhaps played at high volumes with lots of hops and barley action going on.

Kite Operations – Festival

“Festival” is the third album by Kite Operations and showcases their tepid and alluring sonic-driven sound that could easily be mistaken for a b-side from the great Sonic Youth.

Joshua James – Build Me This

Whoa he totally looks like the heroin junkie played by Jared Leto from “Requiem for a Dream”, Joshua’s music is soulful and endearing rock that’s easy on the ears and pleasant to hum along to. Fantastic.

Wiretree – Luck

Austin, Texas long a boon to the indie music scene now can boast Wiretree to its added collection of great exports. “Luck” is a dynamic songwriter’s dream with smart vintage and retro sounds of hipster underground pop that no one can really remember the name of.

Circulatory System – Signal Morning

Featuring the members of The Olivia Tremor Control as well as Jeff Mangum and Julian Koster of the seminal Neutral Milk Hotel, Circulatory System should be no stranger to oodles of praise and fan-boy wanton madness. Fortunately it will be well deserved as this album “Signal Morning” is one of indie intrigue and rocks out with dense and abrasive guitar work.

Eva and the Heartmaker – Let’s Keep This Up Forever

Throwaway pop-rock that features female vocals and rangy rock with pop harmonies from Norway. Nothing great, nothing special but it passes the time well enough.

Jookabox – Dead Zone Boys

Indiana natives Jookabox launch a third full-length album that is a study in the primordial stew of avant garde music effortlessly blending a hodgepodge of intriguing sounds. Get your mind numbed with their genre bending and stirring mix-o-logy.

Kevin Delaney – Pause for Effect

Kevin Delaney’s latest album is a nice move forward from his previous album, “Himalayan Moon”. His singer/songwriter tunes are drenched in hard-working rock with Americana overtures. The sparse elements of stringed instruments (cello, violin, viola) go well with the more countriy-fried blues utensils of harmonica and mandolin.

Lynhurst – Field Day

Sassy pop from a group of siblings that is total California (of course the band harkens from Minneapolis) in its sultry sun-drenched vocals that sing lyrics of heartache and witty satire. Hanson it is not and that’s a good thing.

blueVenus – Grin

Canadian lo-fi pop singer/songwriter is rife with nuance and culture, something you’d expect from a group whose spotlight was just beginning to shine when immigration policies shook the band’s foundations from being together again.

Chad Smith’s Bombastic Meatbats – Meet the Meatbats

Funky jazz improvisational music heralded by the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith that is a big take-it-or-leave-it. If you were hoping for a Deep Purple b-side, then I guess you’d be impressed. Otherwise…

Ming & Ping – Ming & Ping

Twins Ming & Ping once again craft alien spaceship soundtracks with New Wave techno 8-bit synths and warbled bass funk with pop nuance reminiscent of Gary Numan and the Pet Shop Boys. Nintendo-core kids will fall in love with “Vanilla” with its glorious 8-bit-ness.

Versus the Throne – Ruins Afire

Aggressive melodic metalcore outfit Versus the Throne recently inked a deal with Bastardized Recordings; their newest album “Ruins Afire” is a testament to the boundaries that metalcore will attempt to push. Not bad but if you’re not a metalcore fan you’ll want to just keep on truckin’.

Ichor – The Siege

Death metal band Ichor hails from Trier, Germany, the oldest city in the country, “The Siege” is an old school (if you call the mid ‘90s old school) trip through hell with percolated new school greatness. I hear a lot of influence from Obituary and Incantation and that’s fucking grand.

Faust Again – The Trial

Polish death metal outfit Faust Again formed in ’99, and ten years later have warped into a progressive amalgam of hardcore influenced death metal. If you cast this off as just another metalcore album you’ll be missing out on a lot.

Today Forever – Profound Measures

Melodic hardcore quintet Today Forever pens imaginative new school hardcore that have a tinge of emotion (don’t confuse that with ‘emo’ please) and dynamic melodies. It’s a fistful of nice.

Chaos Reach – Monument of Chaos

Yawningly darkened death metal that rarely finds true momentum from either of the brother guitarists Topi or Tatu Hiltunen. The rangy melodies could be interesting if they were backed up with real punch instead of a somber eulogy.

The Division – Mantras

The Division aka Matthew Schultz is dark ambient magick of the ancient fraternal order of The Division with the help of legends like Genesis Porridge, Lydia Lunch, and Chris Connelly. You may remember him for his inventive instrument the Anti Tank Guitar heard on Pigface albums or his multiple soundtracks for movies as varied as “Candyman”, “Paperhouse”, and “Snuffmovie”

Canvas Solaris – Sublimination

Instrumental metal that goes beyond the cerebral bashing your temple into cement that has glass embedded in it all just for effect. It’s hard to imagine that an instrumental metal band can be so heavy hitting without the tongue lashings of a vocalist, but “Sublimination” rips out your jugular with passion.

Mellowdrone – Angry Bear

Rock band whose mission seems to be to rewrite Morrissey jams with more upbeat tempos and less woe-is-me lyrics. Not bad for a band that had one member suffer through a near-death experience and a resulting coma. Big stadium quality indie rock for those people who have heard everything.

Delicate Noise – Filmezza

Sophomore records can make or break an artist’s career. “Filmezza” proves that Delicate Noise won’t fizzle out with a warm electronica album of atmospheric fuzziness that finds Steven Seibold of Hate Dept. mixing. Intriguing…

Unagi – Reinventing the Eel

Not just sushi, Unagi is a tempting hip-hop artist extraordinaire whose excellence in mixing is perhaps only and ironically overshadowed by DJ Shadow himself. “Reinventing the Eel” features such emcees as Motion Man, Chee Malabar, Linkletterz, Orukusaki, Eddie Meeks, Uppanotch, and Unagi himself. Nice one brother.

Growlers – What Heights?

Chaotic post-punk that is the alter-ego of rocksteady punk band Destroy Babylon that finds its voice with energetic and super-charged vocals and melodic guitars with sparse brass and keyboards to provide a dub backdrop. Listen to an MP3 of “All but the Bones”.

Jared McCloud – Romance of the Atlantic

The album title may ring of a long-lost Indiana Jones movie adventure, but the music is heartfelt folk singer-songwriter tunes that boast radio-and-pub friendly lyrics.

ASECRETDEATH – ASECRETDEATH

Bands come and go in the metal genre, a lot are forgettable from the get-go. Some linger for an album or two, but pass in time. This album was written by a band determined to not let that happen to them – good thing they continue to write memorable blasts of chaotic metalcore that aspires to be a lot to a lot of people. I think it hits on almost every cylinder.

Vale of Pnath – Vale of Pnath

Progressive extreme metal garnering their moniker from H.P. Lovecraft, Denver’s Vale of Pnath outshines their peers with sick vocals, crushing guitars, and extremely bashed drums.

Jason Dove – Illegal Activities

Uplifting rock produced by legendary engineer/musician/producer J. Robbins (Jawbox, Channels, Burning Airlines), “Illegal Activities” is a songwriter’s paradise of pop ballads, harmonizing vocals, stirring Fountains-of-Wayne-esque rock crushers, and dynamic songwriting bliss. Get this now.

Inf – The Go Round

Dutch hip-hop pioneer Inf should be proud of his debut instrumental hip-hop album “The Go Round” that will prove to be one of the best albums of the year hands down. Breaks galore, this album astonishes.

Various Artists – Global Lingo

Hip-hop compilation benefit album that hopes to empower our youth through music that features musicians from Nicaragua, Ghana, Thailand, India, and Tanzania.

Dodd Ferrelle – Lonely Parades

Americana with attitude, vision, and plenty of gummy pop harmonies to shake a stick at. Nice formula that sounds like what would happen if Springsteen had decided to explore the indie route.

Skiggy Rapz – Bang to the Boogie

Skiggy Rapz is a Dutch hip-hop artist/producer that is the Netherlands answer to the Beastie Boys late career.

Curtain Rod Character – Schizophrenic Trooper Escorts Witness

Dear Beck, you have a follower. Okay, that’s not 100% fair, but it’s pretty goddamn close. But hey that ain’t necessarily a BAD thing, unless of course you can’t stand Beck.

Outrage – Broken

New England hardcore outfit Outrage deploy an angry debut record that traverses through all that is known as hardcore sound. Not bad but perhaps a few crunchers removed from true inspiration.

The Golden Age – Unlock Yourself

Youth crew hardcore bands should step aside – The Golden Age wants in, and wants in baaaad. “Unlock Yourself” is a decent foray into hardcore’s more melodic genre but as a sophomore album you’d expect a little bit more than your standard clichéd formula.

The Killer – Not All Who Are Lost…

Chicago hardcore that is as pathetic as the Cubs’ season. I believe this sums it up nicely:

Za – Macumba o Muerte

A melting pot of divergent genres, tastes, cultures, and philosophies that finds itself as a one-of-a-kind gem, “Macumba o Muerte” is yet another sequenced piece of genius from our friends at Acuarela.

Vasen – Vasen Street

Swedish folk music that features the nyckelharpa, which is a type of fiddle with a keyboard, traverses through Nordic folk, Americana, bluegrass, for a sly and polished string-based musical sound that is both smart and glorious.

Various Artists – Luaka Bop Presents: Twenty First Century Twenty First Year

David Byrne (the Talking Heads) eclectic indie imprint label that features the best in Brazilian, Cuban, Afro Peruvian, and Psychedelic African music – you know all that stuff that only the truly cool music nerds are into. This is twenty-one years of that collected musical oddities that are polished gems that Byrne is nice enough to share with us plebes.

Pombagira – Black Axis Abraxas

Dense doom metal anthems that clock in around 30 minutes a piece mark this two-song epic EP. London’s Pombagira have their feet implanted on their distortion pedals and churn out crunchy guitar-centric doom.

Animal Noises – Oh Yes You Better Do

Vancouver’s indie artistic punk rockers Animal Names sound a whole lot like late ‘90s emo bands before emo became a trend and something you could buy at the mall. Quirky eccentric emotional indie rock that refuses to not have fun while rocking you out.

Megafaun – Gather, Form & Fly

Sophomore album from experimental folk musicians who combine field recordings, white noise, banjos, and drone to forge an alliance with no one – because no one is doing this right now.

Carrion Crawler – Rot Crumble Collapse

Grind-y death metal with pitch bent grunts and growls. It’s fun but I wouldn’t go so far as to call it something I’d fall back onto when I need to hear disgusting death.

New Roman Times – On the Sleeve

Dramatic boy/girl vocals with dance-punk rhythms that is post-rock fun. Think Block Party or Arcade Fire or maybe even Stars…

Dark Knights of Camelot – Hurrication

Mississippi based grunge heavy rockers Dark Knights of Camelot turn in a nice debut record of hypnotic grungy stoner rock.

Night Owls – Night Owls

Syracuse post-hardcore outfit Night Owls toss a little Jawbox, Big Black, and Helmet into the blender to see what would come out of it.

Eyes Set to Kill – The World Outside

Eyes Set to Kill is metalcore featuring female vocal melodies that are far from wimpish. While the band certainly has the knob set to cliché, “The World Outside” is more than passable.

Tim Ripper Owens – Play My Game

Known for his recent vocal appearance on guitar virtuoso Yngwie Malmsteen’s “Perpetual Flame”, Tim “Ripper” Owens unleashes his debut solo heavy metal effort with the help of friends from bands like Nevermore, Queensryche, Whitesnake, Quiet Riot, Dio, KISS, and Megadeth.

Miss Autopsy – Caterpillar

Weird songwriting with music that bounces from apartment folk to blues to post-punk to indie pop. Interesting and very stripped down to sheer barrenness.

The Delfields – Ogres!

Formed in early 2006, The Delfields write honest vocal-centric indie pop with a heavy lean towards The Shins. This will most definitely be a band that all the hipster indie music blogs will be blabbering about, so catch on now because not be hip is so square.

Gnawledge – Granada Doaba

Recorded in Spain, “Granada Doaba” is a mixture of flamenco and hip-hop. Yes you just read that and yes you must hear it to even begin to fathom it. Oh yeah, and its pretty damn awesome too.

My Son My Executioner – The Burning

Deathcore? Perhaps. Produced by Jeremiah Scott (Living Sacrifice, The Showdown), “The Burning” is a gut-wrenching low blow of metalcore with grunts, scowls, growls, and screaming alongside your traditional powerful breakdowns, melodic choruses, and thrash-y drumming.

Palenke Soultribe – Oro

L.A. based Palenke Soultribe releases “Oro” their first in a trilogy series in honoring the colors of the Colombian flag. Synching up Afro-Colombian rhythms with electro-house synths and sexy vocals, Palenke Soultribe is a group to keep an ear or two on.

Suit of Lights – Bacteria

Unbelievably grand follow-up to their ’05 debut that showcases their uncanny ability to craft memorable pop classics with power-pop guitar chords and emotional songwriting.

Oliver Dumont – Living in Holes and Disused Shafts

Lo-fi noise amplified by weird electronic fuzz, noise, and drone experimental insanity finds Oliver Dumont as a noise artist you simply must follow. Limited edition of only 500 – and I got one!

Aluk Todolo – Finsternis

Black metal mayhem of noise shuttered in an obelisk of shrieking, metallic noise, and utter horror. Scary shit man. Album means “eclipse” in German.

Gog – Mister from the Random More

Hallucinogenic cinema of soundscapes rotten with guitar effects and distorted mischief. Challenging but in the good way.

Treva Blomquist – As It Should Be

Nashville’s own Treva Blomquist writes rich harmonies encased in a folk-pop bubble with strong musicianship and tight songwriting that’s sure to crowd coffeehouses across the nation.

Rosematter – Rosematter

Rosematter is a female-fronted sugary pop-punk six-piece designed to challenge Paramore for this year’s three-chords-and-throw-em-out anthem-writing crown. Peep this video of them playing live for the real thing.

Incommunicado – Losing Daylight

Twisted and crunchy guitar angst that is pockmarked with urgent anarchistic vocals ala DC-area hardcore of years past, Incommunicado’s “Losing Daylight” scores high points on rediscovering an almost forgotten sound.

Lemuria – Get Better

Take a sprinkle of Superchunk, add a dash of Jawbreaker and you’ve got yourself a hipster’s darling called Lemuria with pretty girl vocals dangled alongside pop-influenced punk guitars and good old fashioned rock songwriting.

Eric Avery – Help Wanted

Avery’s (co-founder and bassist of renowned alternative rockers Jane’s Addiction) adventurous indie rock ballads recall Morrissey in scope but “Help Wanted” is tantamount to fresh electronic-fused indie pop-rock the likes of which haven’t been heard much of this exciting year in rock music; featuring the likes of Shirley Manson (Garbage), Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers), and the Foo Fighters’ Taylor Hawkins, Eric Avery needs none of our help to conduct his solid rock solo debut audition.

Robert Scott Thompson – Poesis Athesis

Highly acclaimed composer Robert Scott Thompson debuts on Lens Records and lets the world in on his serene homage to film music, soundscapes, and subtle electronic compositions.

The Playing Favorites – I Remember When I Was Pretty

Moving past the vapid album title, the Playing Favorites write songs that you’d expect from a band that features members hailing from such bands as Lagwagon, Sugarcult, Bad Astronaut, and Summercamp – catchy pop numbers that lean a bit towards the punker side of alternative rock.

Bloodsworn – All Hyllest Til Satan

Originally recorded in ’99, “All Hyllest Til Satan” was remixed in Oslo last year producing one brutal headblast of low-budget black metal gut-churning insanity.

Necroblaspheme – Destination: Nulle Part

French death metal? Yes it does exist and Necroblaspheme is here to rip out the eardrums of the first moron who utters ‘surrender monkey’ or ‘freedom fries’ with their gashing guitar assaults, deep bass grooves, thunderous percussion, and filthy growls.

Decades – Numbered

Texan melodic hardcore with edgy dissonance and bitter melodies so earnest it’s enough to make you grab your best friend…in a half-nelson. In the vein of Modern Life is War and Crime in Stereo.

Listing Ship – A Hull Full of Oil and Bone

Intriguing and introspective folk ballads, alt-country, ‘70s era 3-part harmonies, and emotional pop that beckons followers of Belle and Sebastian as well as Conor Oberst diehards, “A Hull Full of Oil and Bone” shows that Listing Ship’s wondrous creation “Time to Dream” was no one-hit wonder.

One Word Song – I Can’t Be Trusted

New Jersey’s rock outfit One Word Song dive deep into the alternative rock catalog from the ‘90s finding choice bits from Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden, and Incubus to emulate along with a firm nod to more modern acts like Taking Back Sunday and Brand New to copulate with forging a pregnancy that is sure to bear birth to an amalgam of honest cruising pop melodies defined by scrumptious guitars and liquid sweet vocals.

The Steal – The Steal

The United Kingdom’s The Steal sounds not very far removed from their American brethren Kid Dynamite, Gorilla Biscuits, and Lifetime with a firm nod towards youth crew hardcore and melodic punk with pogo-tastic breakdowns.

Monstrum Sepsis – Artifacts

Monstrum Sepsis’ tribal grooves, razor-thin melodies, and Kraftwerk-friendly synths form an intoxicating brew of melodic electronica that pushes the envelope with politically charged samples.

Avenpitch – Cast Off

Avenpitch shoots me another album that showcases this Minneapolis based electro-punk’s utter knack for writing fun, catchy, and most importantly danceable hits that truly bleed Pop Will Eat Itself, which they so graciously reminded me enough about that I busted out “Wise Up Suckers” and “Now For a Feast”. Thanks duders.

Mike Pursley – Eight Boxes

Serene lo-fi ambience written in the foothills of Appalachia while listening to an iPod filled to the brim with yesteryear’s psych-pop, “Eight Boxes” by enigmatic folkster Mike Pursley is an eclectic album to the very extreme and is just as rewarding.

Unwritten Law – Live and Lawless

Other than the beautiful butt cleavage featured on the cover art, “Live and Lawless” is a CD/DVD of live music from one of pop-punk’s more washed up units. Yawn.

Artridge – Butterfly Wing Theory – Part 1 (Think Tank)

Hands down one of most disappointing albums of the year especially noting the finer points of the subtly poignant concept piece “Finished Soundtracks for Unshot Films”, Artridge shrugs off past drum & bass, lo-fi industrial, dark ambient, and dub successes for a mistakenly porous ambient musical misadventure that is boldly boring.

Sinner – Crash & Burn

German metalheads Sinner have been riddling the scene with their version of heavy metal since ’83 and haven’t looked back one iota. Credit their tenacious attitude, penchant for hair metal anthems, and an ability to tour with the big names ala Mr. Big, Savatage, and Deep Purple with their continued success.

Adrenaline – Broken Clocks

Guitar-driven rock-n-roll with horrifically draining vocals that are just as annoying as that fat redneck who used to flick your ears in middle school – yeah you know the one, the guy working at the local gas station that’s got as much going for him as Adrenaline does.

Daggermouth – Turf Wars

Daggermouth contributes to the pile with their brand of melodic pop-punk cum hardcore that recalls Lifetime and Saves the Day and while it may not be the newest form of rock music on the planet, it does most definitely rock it out.