Ra Ra Riot-The Rhumb Line

Ra Ra Riot The Rhumb Line:

Indie pop, heavy on strings. Not bad but the singer reminds me of a cross between the singer from Keane and the singer from The Killers.

Rating: 11/15 Bands made worse by mediocre singers

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit-Selftitled

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit Selftitled:

Radio friendly country rock. This sounds like a lot of bands getting airplay are going for. Clean production, three chords, and heartfelt lyrics. The difference being, Isbell is genuine and talented.

Rating: 12/15 Bands whose albums weren't recorded in a basement on a Tascam

Benjy Ferree-Come Back to the Five and Dime, Bobby Dee Bobby Dee

Benjy Ferree Come Back to the Five and Dime, Bobby Dee Bobby Dee:

Cool doo-wop vocal harmonies and instrumental arrangements on some tracks. The album jumps around a lot stylistically, but largely sticks to extensions of popular 50's styles of music and garage rock. Most styles are pulled off well. Just ignore the abysmal lyrics and the TLDR concept of the album.

Rating: 11/15 Why couldn't you be singing about something else? points.

Thurston Moore- Trees Outside The Academy

Thurston Moore Trees Outside The Academy:

More interesting and adventurous than recent Sonic Youth releases. Lots of strings and a few bad ass guitar solos provided by J Mascis. A solid Indie Rock album.

Rating: 13/15 Sonic dads

Ugly Casanova-Sharpen Your Teeth

Ugly Casanova Sharpen Your Teeth:

Indie pop, heavy on acoustic finger-picking and strings. Tasteful layered vocals and touching lyrics make this one an interesting listen.

Rating: 11/15 Modest Mice

Red Sea Station-Red Sea Station

Red Sea Station Red Sea Station:

Heavily electronic Indie pop, not bad. The vocals and lyrics are passable as is the musical arrangement, but the keyboards ruin it for me. The lines they're playing work, but the Nintendo Sine wave sound bugs me. This album would improve drastically if the keyboard player switched to better presets.

Rating: 9/15 Unpleasant beeps

Raskolnikov's Dream - Uriel

Raskolnikov's Dream Uriel:

Jarring beats mix with the soundtrack to the original Zelda.

Rating: 5/15 Garage Band bands