Opposite Day Safety First (Eat A Finger Peach Look Music): Austinites Opposite Day have been cranking out weirdo punk music for six years now, and Safety First is the band's third album, which makes them "official." Like most punk bands, the majority of songs last around two to three minutes. And while Opposite Day is definitely punk, the album's 17 tracks explore motley styles, ranging from hardcore to acoustic to experimental to Incubus-esque, all with......

Taylor Mills Lullagoodbye (Aquapulse) There’s a new safe word being grunted out of S&M dungeons everywhere, and it is Lullagoodbye. It means slow down, ease up and take fewer risks. Although the album mostly lies within the boundaries of uninspired adult contemporary, at times her voice is filled with smooth, sometimes-sultry melody and a graceful piano whispers like a bedtime story. Then, there’s the added bonus of looking at her staggeringly attractive mug on every......

Montreal's Besnard Lakes are not your typical Canadian outfit. When you think of an outfit fronted by a husband and wife duo, you probably think of sugary slop soaked with trite lyrics and knowing glances, but don't make that mistake when it comes to The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse, the band's latest effort. Roy Orbison and Brian Wilson spring to mind as masters of falsetto harmony, and that comparison is legit, but......

After counting your blessings for not being pierced through the heart by a stingray over the weekend, you might want to stop by your local record store and check out what's new. Grizzly Bear Yellow House (Warp) Ed Droste's Grizzly Bear are back with a full band and a shimmering landscape of an album reminiscent of Brian Wilson's hey-day, old fashioned American harmony and lush layers of sound that combine folk, post-rock and psychedelia......

Sam Means and Nate Ruess have survived being dropped from their record label (twice), at least one agonizing long-term relationship, and a year of preparation on their sophomore effort as The Format, Dog Problems. Since their debut on Atlantic in 2003, the band has recorded and produced (with the help of Roger Manning of Jellyfish fame) an energetic, toe-tapping and pop-tastic collection of songs worthy of all your summer mix tapes for crushes and......