Diastole - Escalade E.P.

Gram: Great rock from the U.K. - brilliant guitars, throbbing drums & bass, inventive vocal melodies, excellent songs.
Chris: Systolic: 90. Diastolic: several thousand, my rock-deprived friend. Fresh, thrilling and cool.
Bernie: Creative rock like Big Wreck, but with a crazy girl singing. Fire your PR guy.
Pete: Listen for this band. "Small Matters" is one of the best songs of the decade.

Drag The River - It's Crazy

Gram: Flying Burrito's style country, only darker and rougher around the edges. Great songs, awesome steel.
Chris: The whiskey bottle is half full. Duscky country headed t'wards darkness, but slightly hopeful.
Bernie: Very Son Volt. I could listen to this CD all day.
Pete: 16 Horsepower in Springsteen's Nebraska. It liberates 40 year old women from their tight jeans.

The Flaming Sideburns - Back To The Grave

Gram: The Danes rock! Like Jack White wishes he could… 70's style crunch & groove. So Awesome.
Chris: More kick-ass Danish garage. Dark & psychedelic like Hamlet with a Vox.
Bernie: I don't know what they are saying, but I know it rocks!
Pete: Shouldn't it be Flemish sideburns? They even sing in some Norse tongue! Drock & Droll.

Foma - Phobos

Gram: Sleeper art rock, slow emo. I know there's a story. I can't follow it, though.
Chris: Robopera? Emopera? A fascinating world they've compiled, but mustn't cut into my Everquest time.
Bernie: Curious and intriguing sci-fi songs with worthy warnings like "don't burn babies". Killer.
Pete: This happens when you listen to too much new Flaming Lips & not enough old Flaming Lips.

Frontside Five - Fall Out Of Line

Gram: Denver's west coast skate punk band extraordinaire. Old school fast drumming & powerful guitars & a message. Rock!
Chris: Brutal bass-heavy skaters that give 2 fucks what I think. Skatenigs spitting ball bearings.
Bernie: Classic hardcore skater punk. Skate!!! Fight!!! Rock!!!
Pete: Well-produced skate punk? What have we come to? Lipslide to frontside grinder.

The Gemz - Blue Is For Girls

Gram: You're kidding, right? Wasn't this on TV in the 80's?
Chris: I'm notifying child protective services. Their parents need to be put away.
Bernie: Made all the more twisted because "Young Boys" is a fucking Midge Ure song!
Pete: I don't care what you say… that one girl is stacked! The other one is cute…

Emily Herring - My Tears Will Be Relieved

Gram: Gritty blues with a very classical flavor. Unfortunately, her voice slides more than her guitar.
Chris: Maria Muldaur singing delta blues & country. Dirty and gritty, damned if she don't get it done.
Bernie: Great blues guitar, but the vocals are a little too earthy for me.
Pete: Is why you may discard your Ani DiFranco. Hell, she does John Hurt. No pretense.

Jil Station - Still Love

Gram: Very solid anthemic rock spanning genres - well produced & highly melodic. Addictive like caffeine… yummy.
Chris: The bunnies are getting echoey again. Dark, but energetic 80's Magazine stuff.
Bernie: David from Depeche Mode's vocals over solid rock and roll.
Pete: The inspiration for a whole new generation of John Hughes movies. Bring it.

Larkin McLean - X-Rated Musical

Gram: Cool jazz-heavy album that ably creates the feel of a Los Angeles summertime affair.
Chris: A Crayon-rubbing of good lounge jazz. Cartoon torch songs describing its own self.
Bernie: A 1960's James Bond jazzy stroll.
Pete: Not much I like better than sexy, half-naked, smoky-voiced beauties - even with the jazz.

Mon Frere - Blood Sweat & Swords

Gram: Carnival metal with a powerful girl singer. Thick synthesizers perfectly accent the modern rock goodness.
Chris: Manufactured Teen angst a'la Killing Heidi. Are these kids Aussies? They sound like Aussies.
Bernie: Cool cover art, music ain't so bad either.
Pete: Avril Lavigne, I want to kick you in the nuts. Plus, also, Emo E.L.O. Fischerspooner.

The Payola Reserve - One Long Apology

Gram: Umbrella rock. So much great stuff happening, it's hard to single anything out… it's cool.
Chris: As steeped in Americana as pecan divinity from Stuckey's.
Bernie: When did the Austin kids all move to Baltimore?
Pete: Like Zykos covering Dylan or Josh Ritter. Indie, but not indie.

The Pickadillos - We're Only In It For The Dobro

Gram: Clever bluegrass pick-downs of some great songs… wish sound quality were better. Cool, nonetheless.
Chris: Not since Hayseed Dixie has bluegrass rocked thus hard. Clever and yet, not stupid.
Bernie: Don't usually like live records, but I couldn't imagine it any better.
Pete: Adequate bluegrass players turn loose on traditional & non-traditional tunes. Probably great live…

Retisonic - Levittown E.P.

Gram: Hollow post-modern rock - The Fall - heavy on rhythm and disarmingly cool melodies. New favorite band.
Chris: Adam Ant-ium Brit-snot but more annoying. Better Than Ezra, but only slightly.
Bernie: Stuffy, smart kid rock. I wish I was clever.
Pete: Hey buddy, your band's way ahead of you. Try to keep up. Off-key, when he bothers to sing.

Rhythm Vision - The Future Of Things Silent

Gram: Very melodic world-beat-hip-hop with a few things to say. Some smooth rapping & great production.
Chris: Decent Beatles-based hip-hop with 70's R'N'B tones. The name sure sticks out though, huh?
Bernie: The style is about 5 years behind the curve, lyrics are kinda uninspired, too.
Pete: Dude… They're all white!

Burr Settles - Sketches

Gram: Elliott Smith-style down-tempo popster who writes highly personal; songs and plays guitar real good.
Chris: Sims songs… appearing to be about real things, but actually once removed from reality.
Bernie: Mellow post-punk grunge inspired singer songwriter excellence.
Pete: Cool songs wandering all over the map. Happy guitar player who can actually write, too.

The Studiofix - Will Change Your Life

Gram: Energetic girl punk rock, light ondistortion, heavy on groove. Great musicians, gruff singing. Awesome!
Chris: Watered down Detroit rock, like the Bellrays fronted by Pink. Nothing pretending to be something.
Bernie: Vocals rubbed me wrong at first, but then like magic it started to rock.
Pete: Three girls who rock so much harder than the Gemz. Sexy kitten scratch fever.

The World/Inferno Friendship Society - Red-Eyed Soul

Gram: The modernized big band - nine dudes, great songs, talented arranging & playing, jumping rock'n'soul.
Chris: Too much Style Council, not enough Jam. Swarthy singer is unintelligible and self-important.
Bernie: Seems like too much 80's bullshit to me, but if you're into that…
Pete: Like Elvis Costello playing showtunes penned by Elvis Costello.