If Widowspeak keep refining their sound and cranking out memorable and quietly impressive songs like they do here, they may end up being pretty special. Even if they don't, though, this album will still be out there to help soothe and thrill you when you have a post-Mazzy itch you need to scratch.

This is an interesting album, one that will reward repeated listening, but one can't help but think that it's a transitional album, and that Dead Confederate are building to something even bigger and more balanced down the road.

River of Souls finds a way to economically say everything the artist needs to say, touching on myriad ideas and styles, wasting no words, and making it look so easy.

A well-rounded effort with plenty of promise, the posthumous Welcome to JFK is one bittersweet victory.

How Do You Spell Heaven is one of the best and smartest rock albums Guided by Voices have given us since Isolation Drills, and this music confirms Pollard is no dummy when it comes to putting together a band.

Due to its length (nearly 50 minutes), cerebral constitution, and tenuous songs structures, SAP can take some effort on the part of the listener by the end, although its unpredictability, enveloping intimacy and creative restlessness are just as likely to engage.

"Blurring" is an inventive trip-hop diversion, with booming illbient bass, slowly crushing breaks, and a downright lovely vocal hook. It ends up leaving a much bigger impression than most of the other tracks on the album, even if it isn't exactly the type of earworm one might expect from the artist's description of his intentions for the project.

While fans might be disappointed that the album doesn't feature "Herb" Alexander, they'll have a hard time being disappointed with Green Naugahyde, an album that will satisfy those in the know while continuing, as Primus always have, to baffle the uninitiated.

Animal Races comes a bit late in the season to be the smart indie pop album of the summer, but if you want to conjure the mood of a beautiful day in a warm California town, the Cool Ghouls are just the band to do it.

A brief teaser with only eight tracks that last less than half an hour, it's enough to make the promise of the young Nashville native evident.

First Rose of Spring is sweet and elegiac, a record that sways gently in the breeze, only picking up its pace when it's time to swing through a cover of Jimmy Dean's "Just Bummin' Around." Original songs are few and far between here.

While the instrumentals give cause for heads to silently nod in appreciation, only a few tracks break away to make this something other than music suited for the background.

The Gathering is Arbouretum's "bridge too far"; there is no return because this set is a destination, not a development.

If the preceding Dusk at Cubist Castle was the Olivia Tremor Control's very own White Album, then the labyrinthine Black Foliage is their Smile -- it's an imploding masterpiece, a work teetering on the cliff's edge between genius and madness.

It's clear that despite laudable ambitions, comeback albums should be focused and lean, not as flabby as this one.

That hint of edge, of literal weight, adds to the collage of tones on a piece like "Canyon Meadows" or acts as an undertow on the flow of "New Pures," helping to transform that feeling of contemplation while not actually crushing it in any sense.

Shade Themes from Kairos is striking in that it not only hosts a variety of tones and colors based on dynamics, textures, and yes, the illusory stretching of time, but it reflects a true collaboration by principals who are actually investigating what the possibilities of the latter might sound like were it actually possible.

For the most part, the album sounds bright and energetic rather than dark and gloomy, but there's still an undercurrent of sadness to some of the lyrics, such as the heartbroken lament "Gold Star." Even still, this doesn't detract from the ecstatic spirit of the album, which is refreshingly creative and unpredictable.

Highlights are well placed within an astutely paced sequence of short and bittersweet love songs and instrumentals, all substantive and ripe for sampling. ... Piano, strings, and horns have greater presence, providing a lighter, often joyous touch that complements the mostly muscular drums and chunky basslines.

Traversa is sumptuous background music that can brighten the mood or simply soothe the soul.

Sleepless Night is as warm and comforting as a cup of hot chocolate, and while it hardly seems like a major work (and it isn't), it's thoroughly enjoyable and a reminder that you can hardly do better than Yo La Tengo in making a playlist of treasured oldies.

The EP's wistful quality combined with its brevity can make The Rest seem almost unassuming, but it's not slight: it's a welcome coda to the relative exuberance of The Record.

They don't try to reinvent the wheel here, largely sticking to the rootsy punk vibe of blown-out speaker vocals, overdriven guitar twang, and thumping drums. Yet, there are still some ear-popping moments.

Equally thoughtful and energetic, Capture/Release shows that the Rakes have a smart, sharp voice that ultimately sets them apart from the rest of their scene.

By reining in the freedom that made Clovis People, Vol. 3 such a puzzling wonder, Taylor manages to up the ante musically and lyrically on Contraband.

Compared to Usher's previous album, this is weighted more heavily toward dance-pop, much of which is functional and well made but unremarkable.

The way they join the organic and the electronic, the cerebral and the emotional on Close to the Glass makes it the most thoroughly rewarding and enjoyable album of the Notwist's career to date.