MP3: Neil Halsted- Paint a Face from oh mighty engine (July 29th, Brushfire Records)
Dream stirrer extraordinaire, Neil Halsted of Mojave 3, has crafted his second solo record. His follow-up will be available through Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Records. Calm, contemplative pop-folk.

MP3: William F. Gibbs- Operate from My Fellow Sophisticates (Out now, Old Man Records)
This Southerner invariably is hard to peg. A couple months ago he had a track hosted on RCRD LBL that swung in the direction of Jeff Buckley. At the beginning of June, he gave us two funky grooves. Now, we’re treated to a heartfelt piano ballad.

MP3: The Broken West- Perfect Games from Now or Heaven? (September 9th, Merge)
More soaring power pop from the group that crafted one of our favorite songs of 2007, “Baby On My Arm.” To be honest, their Merge debut was ht or miss– this would be a focused hit.

MP3: Robert Pollard- Gratification To Concrete from Robert Pollard Is Off To Business (Out now, GBV, Inc)
Hell, I might be biased when it comes to Pollard. In my opinion, this solo output is closer to what fans of Guided By Voices (polished years) will be looking for.

And now for this week¹s Smorgasbord Sundae Wafer…
Stream/MP3: Oceans- Your Plane Leaves Tomorrow (Self released)
While this number might not get a proper release, the Urbana/Chicago kids just wrapped up recording a slew of new songs during the Puerto Rican independence weekend in Humboldt Park. That takes focus people. Go see some seriously epic post-rock tomorrow, June 26th at Beat Kitchen. They’re opening for fellow locals, Mt. St. Helens.

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