You Can’t Take It With You
Triple Crown Records

As Tall As Lions opened for Dredg this summer and there is a good reason for that. They sound like a poor man’s Dredg. It’s a little bit pop, a little bit rock, a little bit prog, a little bit heavy and a lot of goodness. If you are driving late at night on a deserted or desolate road just letting you mind wander, then this is the soundtrack.

http://www.astallaslions.com

Bridge and Tunnel
Planting Seeds Records

For all of you that prefer straight up traditional folk, Linda Draper is the artist for you. On her sixth album Draper delivers more of her trademark acoustic-folk that is perfect for relaxing on a Sunday afternoon, spiced up with a creepy cover of Rolling Stones’ “Mother’s Little Helper.” Her whisper soft voice gives the song a psychotic twist that Mick Jagger could never accomplish.

http://www.lindadraper.com

Black Clouds
Kiam Records

Blues-rock meets fuzz-rock meets, well, every other kind of rock you can think of on their second album. Highlights include the subdued “I’m a Truck” and the quick-paced “Here Come the Guns” which has a brilliant video with nothing but flip book drawings. These guys have been around for a decade and this album shows a maturity that most rock albums don’t have.

http://www.choochoolarouge.com

Invitation Air
One Percent Press

The Ginger Envelope bring light fluffy folk that is perfect for cool mornings on the porch watching the sun rise. There isn’t a song that stands out, but vocalist Patrick Carey’s voice is so inviting that it doesn’t matter that all the songs essentially run together. It’s all good.

The Repechage
Makeshift Music/ Migrant Records

Fuzzed out alt-rock is what Two Way Radio’s JD Reager gives you on his debut solo disc. Songs like “I Can’t Decide” and “We’ll Be Dying” are perfect for those who like classic rock-influenced pop-rock. Most music that sounds like this comes across as artificial to me, but Reager puts some feeling behind his music and it shows.