"How did I miss this? Really fun b-sid..." more

"How did I miss this? Really fun b-sides and rarities collection. Very stripped-down and better for it. David Gates wrote #10." less

"A new take on old school prog"

"I played you a couple of tracks when ..." more

"I played you a couple of tracks when I visited, and I'm liking it even better now -- prog flavored ethereal shoegaze, with a few electro-pop tracks. I skipped track 7 --kinda prosaic -- but the rest is really really pretty" less

"As the name suggests, very delicate. ..." more

"As the name suggests, very delicate. Like a soft prog version of The Clientele, but ethereal and spiritual. I think you'll like this." less

"You're going to LOVE this. Swedish ps..." more

"You're going to LOVE this. Swedish psych-rock, in the past very VERY heavy. This time adding many more folky, classical-ish elements. More SF psych than LA, and I skip the guitar freakout of track 4, but I swear you're going to love this." less

"70s era funk with some amazing BONGO ..." more

"70s era funk with some amazing BONGO and other percussion (Track 2: Let There Be Drum)...featuring Jim Gordon! Plus requisite chka-chka guitar, horns, the whole thang." less

"Skip the long version of The Evil Tha..." more

"Skip the long version of The Evil That Men Do and The Story of Jazz, and you're left with a surprising gem -- alt-country, Beatlesy Byrdsy pop, a few Nuggets-flavored ones thrown in for good measure alongside some sweet little ballads. Definitely snuck up on me." less

"I forget about these guys because I d..." more

"I forget about these guys because I downloaded this one years ago. Angular acoustic emo-ish. They used to have a lot more at emu, and I got it all. Fortunately, this one is my favorite. Lead guy is Rob Crow -- I have a couple of his too." less

"Contemporary New Yorkers, but sound v..." more

"Contemporary New Yorkers, but sound very early 80s 4AD, heavily distorted guitars, LOUD, and as you might guess from the name, dark. Still, quite tasty." less

"You may have seen this on my best of ..." more

"You may have seen this on my best of 08 list...pretty high on the list, actually. The tag says "pop," but I'd say hip-hop, instrumental with a few small vocal samples, a nice mix of old and (mostly) new turntablism to very jazzy effect" less

"Upbeat indie pop with that angular pr..." more

"Upbeat indie pop with that angular prog-esque flavor that I'm digging right now. Some tracks are heavier than you might think from the samples, but still quite shiny. Former lead guy with Field Mice (see below). I confess that this is one of those groups I look at in my emu folder and thing -- I remember liking these guys, but I'm not 100% why. I'll probably remember now that I've written this." less

"More of the AM Gold pop flavor -- Bac..." more

"More of the AM Gold pop flavor -- Bachrach-y, Boettcher-y, Beatle-y. I think they nail this one." less

"I just saw that TWO of my lists with ..." more

"I just saw that TWO of my lists with this disk are on the album page. Let's see if I can make it 3. Very nice dance-y rock-y, big sound. One of the guys here is Richard Morel (see below), the other is Bob Mould from Husker Du, his famous first band...and I think this kick's their heinies. Start with the first track here - killer vocoder!!" less

"I had their EP on the list a couple o..." more

"I had their EP on the list a couple of months ago, but I deleted it when they released this, their debut LP. Razor sharp hooks from these 2 wimmin, nice 80s-ish vibe." less

"Quirky, power poppy electro-ish, very..." more

"Quirky, power poppy electro-ish, very bright. Kinda have to smile when you listen to it. If Peter Gabriel fronted Squeeze? Maybe not." less

"It's Billy Joel's daughter! She's got..." more

"It's Billy Joel's daughter! She's got chops, though. Check her cover of "Don't Let It Bring You Down."" less

"Can't believe I forgot this until now..." more

"Can't believe I forgot this until now! One of my fave downloads -- while a little hip-hoppy, mostly r& flavored pop with a strongly spiritual vibe. Some tracks you MUST skil because they BITE: 8, 11, 13, 14. But I think this is really beautiful" less

"A brother and sister lead a band of s..." more

"A brother and sister lead a band of sunny California-sounding (they're from Austin) popsters with the lyric "Boettcher's on the radio," while also recalling Neil Young and the Stray Gators. Bonus points (sort of): dad's a minister, mom's an indie gospel artist, and they taught their kids to love Boettcher-style pop. No kidding. The only weak song is the first one, so skip it and enjoy the rest." less

"My favorite of the year so far. Much ..." more

"My favorite of the year so far. Much more complicated than you might think from the samples. You can hear the "soaring" aspect of it in the samples, but the female-male pairing with layered guitars can approach prog-flavored, if still pop" less

"Gentle indie pop with a CELLO."

"Duet album with Susannah Hoffs with s..." more

"Duet album with Susannah Hoffs with some truly interesting covers. At first I dismissed it as a gimmick, but it has really grown on me" less

"This guy's dang near psychotic, but m..." more

"This guy's dang near psychotic, but makes truly beautiful, sweetly spiritual music. You might not need every track, but some real gems. He's got some nice EPs too." less

"Another clever Beatley poppy guy who ..." more

"Another clever Beatley poppy guy who has a bunch of records here. Most of 'em are really long (many are remastered and expanded from the originals) and I doubt anybody needs all of any of 'em...but this one's close." less

"This kid's going to be a giant, as bo..." more

"This kid's going to be a giant, as both a composer and player. Truly startlingly good. Also check out the one he did after this, called Anthem. Darker, and you can skip the last track, but amazing. If you like it, check out my list called "Trumpets." Quite a few there I think you'd like too." less

"Oddly satisfying odd revivalism of Lo..." more

"Oddly satisfying odd revivalism of Love-ish, Scott Walker-ish loud chamber pop. Odd, but I'm really getting into it." less

"The real deal. The obvious summary is..." more

"The real deal. The obvious summary is Blonde-on-Blonde era Dylan crossed with soul...which it kind-of is. A bit deranged, with a little sprinkling of Love at their most deranged. Ultimately a little too deranged for me, but I think it may be right up your most deranged alley" less

"A REALLY nice surprise. Heavily layer..." more

"A REALLY nice surprise. Heavily layered prog/shoegaze cross....very pretty, not unlike a heavy Green Pheasant. They have other stuff here, all pretty good. These 4 tracks are my faves." less

"Very pretty pop with electronic and f..." more

"Very pretty pop with electronic and folk flourishes. A bunch of the guests here are among my emu favorites -- The Notwist, American Analog Set, Alias...." less

"Even though I had this already, I dow..." more

"Even though I had this already, I downloaded it when it showed up here just to keep the love flowing. I mention these guys a few times in the list, and this is a big reason why." less

"All over the map, in a really good wa..." more

"All over the map, in a really good way. You'll hear The Beatles, Flaming Lips, XTC, Genesis, Don Ho, Doug Sahm, Johnny Cash....These guys are nuts, and yet it all hangs together...." less

"You'll recognize him from the Pat Met..." more

"You'll recognize him from the Pat Metheny Group, but here he steps out front -- one of the nicest fretless bass-led records I've ever heard. All ballads. I think you'll like this one a lot when you're ready for something really quiet" less

"Remarkable lo-fi pop. You can skip a ..." more

"Remarkable lo-fi pop. You can skip a couple, but the good ones are really good." less

"Post-punk prog? Not really, but not r..." more

"Post-punk prog? Not really, but not really NOT, either. Lead singer and mastermind is Boston's Mary Timony, something of a legend here." less

"I know you like the 4AD label as much..." more

"I know you like the 4AD label as much as I do, but I'd totally missed this guy before. Kind of poppy, but still off-kilter...of course...." less

"This guy's AMAZING. 22, plays all the..." more

"This guy's AMAZING. 22, plays all the instruments, remarkable writer, completely fresh electropop. The guys at emusic kind of discovered him, helped him pick the songs for this record out of the hundreds he's written, and is pushing it hard. Another that it took me a while to come around on, but boy howdy, I'm overwhelmed by it." less

"Like The Delays, the lead singer is a..." more

"Like The Delays, the lead singer is a guy who sounds like a girl. This one is glitchy, trip-hoppy, kind of eerie. It's growing on me big time. Currently at #2 on the list of the year's best." less

"I asked about the flugelhorn because ..." more

"I asked about the flugelhorn because of Kenny Wheeler. He's in his 70s, maybe older, and is known for this far more than trumpet. A genuine jazz giant. Also a fine composer - wrote this for string quartet and horn, and doesn't even play horn on every track. Remarkable." less

"Another child with a huge voice and a..." more

"Another child with a huge voice and a huge talent. The first few samples sound like familiar R&B, but keep going -- she covers as many styles as anybody out there. Another contender for year's best." less

"The other half of the Bags' Groove se..." more

"The other half of the Bags' Groove session, and in some ways even better. BTW, "Bags" is vibes player Percy Heath. You know you're cool when Miles names HIS record after YOU." less

"Another husband and wife team, a litt..." more

"Another husband and wife team, a little tougher than Weepies, but also lower-fi -- lots of brushes, very little sheen. I listen to this one a LOT." less

"I don't hear much Hendrix in here, bu..." more

"I don't hear much Hendrix in here, but a fantastic record. I love the jazz organ, and Lonnie is one of the greats. John Abercrombie on guitar -- a really diverse player, one of my favorites -- and a drummer. Only 4 tracks so also a bargain, but one of my recent faves." less

"Another band that felt overhyped to m..." more

"Another band that felt overhyped to me, especially their greatest hits, which did nothing for me. I'm obviously in a dire minority, but this one feels like it's firing on all cylinders. Beatle-esque mainstream pop, so maybe too close to your rut, if not squarely in it, but I just came around on them in the last couple of weeks. I'm listening to this one A LOT these days." less

"It took me a long time to come around..." more

"It took me a long time to come around on this one. People have been raving about it as one of the year's best since it came out, and I'm starting to agree. Calls back to new wave, but nicely updated with a very dance-y vibe." less

"Sharp pop. As soon as you know it's f..." more

"Sharp pop. As soon as you know it's from New Zealand, it SOUNDS like it's from New Zealand, you'll say oh yeah, sounds like New Zealand. A charmer." less

"Outstanding country-ish rock-ish. The..." more

"Outstanding country-ish rock-ish. These guys also have amazing voices." less

"OUTSTANDING 2-track single. "He" is M..." more

"OUTSTANDING 2-track single. "He" is Markus Acher of The Notwist, "she" is Valerie from Lali Puna, a group I also really, really like. They're a couple and they kinda look like John and Yoko. Great, great single." less

"The Notwist is one of my favorite gro..." more

"The Notwist is one of my favorite groups, and this is one of their very best records -- minimal techno-flavored pop, some very nice jazzy flourishes related to their work with Tied & Tickled Trio, below" less

"One of those groups I feel guilty for..." more

"One of those groups I feel guilty for not liking better - you'll see lots of pink checks and other raves on the artist page. THIS one I like a lot." less

"MAJOR power pop. As always with best-..." more

"MAJOR power pop. As always with best-ofs, some you can definitely skip. Cherry pick here, do the same with their new record, and you have a dynamite pile o' tracks." less

"I found this guy when I was listening..." more

"I found this guy when I was listening to techno DJ mixes -- but this ain't that. It's got an electronic flair, but definitely rockist. Kind of like if Britpop came from Boston (which this does)" less

"Just came out, and already in the run..." more

"Just came out, and already in the running for my best of 2008. Super bright and sunny, really really well done." less

"You know how every summer emu kind of..." more

"You know how every summer emu kind of annoints a "THIS is the summer album" -- this is my nomination. Really fun stuff." less

"Another all-time emu fave. You'll lik..." more

"Another all-time emu fave. You'll like this one -- upbeat LA pop." less

"One of my all-time emu faves."

"The samples sound very lightweight, a..." more

"The samples sound very lightweight, almost muzak. Nope. Very twisty, layered up, unexpected shifts -- so yeah, kind of lightweight jazzy, but almost avant-garde too." less

"I have nearly all of their stuff and ..." more

"I have nearly all of their stuff and am nuts about it. This is my favorite, with Roomsound right behind it." less

"Mixes (mostly) traditional bop -- sup..." more

"Mixes (mostly) traditional bop -- super dry trumpet and reeds -- with a very nice electronica flavor. Not a trio. There are 6 of them, 2 of whom are the Acher Brothers from The Notwist" less

"Really HUGE post-punk."

"You got this one, right? If not..."

"VERY nice instrumental record from th..." more

"VERY nice instrumental record from the extended Notwist family. I also like their record called Profane." less

"Outstanding lo-fi, a gem."

"Odd mix of modern and retro, experime..." more

"Odd mix of modern and retro, experimental and straight-up pop/rock. One of the ones that I keep coming back to." less

"They were really big in the indie sce..." more

"They were really big in the indie scene in the early 90s. This reunion record is great" less

"One of those indie superstar acts lik..." more

"One of those indie superstar acts like Spoon that I should probably like more than I do...but I finally got around to this one and it's pretty good. Not that I needed all 40 tracks from this after all...." less

"you surely have this, but just in cas..." more

"you surely have this, but just in case..." less