The Gunshy - No Man's Blues

Bush: Rough voiced dark music that defies easy categorization. Lots of words to digest.

Kerry: Simple and straightforward, good vocals. Almost old school punk, not quite.

Nader: Like the songs individually, not an album to listen to all the way through.

Other Guy: Tom Waits isn't just this guy's hero. This guy is Tom Waits.

Kid Dakota - The West Is The Future

Bush: Epic and noisy, beautiful songs, intelligent lyrics, perfect moody music. Great artwork, too!

Kerry: Indie art-rock with alt-country flavor. Would be great on a David Lynch soundtrack..

Nader: Shouldn't they have been on the Curiosa tour?

Other Guy: The two good things about Tool, with music you can actually listen to.

Richard Shindell - Vuelta

Bush: Beautiful, gentle record of the year. Soulful folk at its best.

Kerry: Ten songs that are better than any James Taylor... ever!.

Nader: Wow. This is really nice. Good songs, mixed well... sweet sweet smooth as honey folk.

Other Guy: Heartbreaking folk-Celtic. Good storytelling, like Gordon Lightfoot..

County Road X - From Seed To Stone

Bush: So, this is what light jazz and alt-country sound like mixed. Good background music.

Kerry: Mix of country riffs with jazz jamming. A bit of Fiddler On The Roof.

Nader: Sounds like it should be the soundtrack to a weird little French cartoon... or something.

Other Guy: I really wanted so much more to accompany this artwork..

Mana Erg - The Blind Watchmaker

Bush: Interesting experimental EBM. Amazing soundscapes and Rhythms. Cool vocal effects. Covers lots of electronic ground.

Kerry: Distorted KMFDM-like industrial electronica. Great for goth nights.

Nader: Rehashed early 90's industrial sounds and concepts. Ok if you're still there, not progressive.

Alu - Infomercial Gasmask

Bush: Emiliana Torrini trying to fit in giant words. Great ambience musically, lacks a bit vocally.

Kerry: Haunting, ambient background with quirky accents. Going for Bjork-type thing, but voice isn't distinct enough.

Nader: Well, it's a little better than the new Bjork album.

Assembly Of Dust - The Honest Hour

Bush: Great 70's style prog-pop, intelligent lyrics, but a bit campy musically. Smooth, lacks dynamics.

Kerry: Grateful Dead style country blues. Typical no soul white guy music.

Nader: It's like Jackson Browne playing a practical joke.

Other Guy: Oh God! Steely Dan actually influenced somebody? Really???

Cledus T Judd - Bipolar And Proud

Bush: The best laugh I've had all year. Best redneck comedy, with some great country music.

Kerry: Funny lyrics. Not clever, just funny. Very funny. the next Ray Stevens.

Nader: hhh... Why is flatulence so funny, anyway? Everyone does it.

Other Guy: Weird Al on whiskey. Funnier than Foxworthy, Engvall or the other guy.

The Pillcrushers - Welcome To The World

Bush: Matthew Sweet style pop with fewer hooks, but grittier guitars. Just good pop music.

Kerry: Sweet and anaesthetic, but it makes me forget I'm alive as it dulls the pain.

Nader: Mediocre college rock.

Other Guy: Guess who's back in the atmosphere? Predictable roots pop Crowded House-martins blown to Smithereens.

Alter Bridge - One Day Remains

Bush: Singer went to Cornell University. Corporate Nu Metal. Better than Velvet Revolver.

Kerry: Sounds like Creed with new lead singer... It IS Creed with a new lead singer.

Nader: Creed does Soundgarden. Yeah! No, wait... Fuck Yeah!.

Other Guy: Listening to this band is like being in a garden... A garden of sound.

Weapon Of Choice - Color Me Funky

Bush: Those is some funky trombones. Overall tinny rather rubbery. Doesn't grab. Bring back Fishbone!.

Kerry: Slow down funk that's missingfunk. Groovy beats and cool sounds, less preachy than before.

Nader: Formless and uninvolving funk. Weak, banal and wasteful.

Other Guy: Standard Fishbone album, only it's not Fishbone. Color me bored.

Sarah Glynn - To Sweeten Up

Bush: Musically expansive, choked-back smoky vocals, clever phrasing and syncopation. Unique mature lounge jazz-rock.

Kerry: Smooth fusion of jazz and indie-pop. Interesting melodies and introspective lyrics. Very cool music.

Nader: I keep hoping for something good and I keep being disappointed.

Other Guy: Interesting timing changes and false stops, but the whole is a bit lacking.

Jordan Rudess - Rhythm Of Time

Bush: Dream Theater keyboardist assembles killer guest list for solo record. Some cool grooves and sounds.

Kerry: It is perhaps time to shut the doors of the GTI for good.

Nader: I can't believe Kip Winger is on this album.

Other Guy: The pretentiousness of prog-rock and the wanking of hair metal... plus smarmy jazz.

Rich Serafin - Naked Monsters

Bush: Like Luna and Spiritualized rolled into a tight shoegaze burrito. Definite Spacemen3 vibe..

Kerry: The Jesus And Pixie Chain. Pretty cool downer rock. I like it straight. No chaser.

Nader: Bad mixing. Vocals so muted they're ephemeral; nearly transparent. To boot, it's duller than Nebraska.

Replicant (featuring Marc Almond) - Face Control e.p.

Bush: Marc Almond lends vocals to cool electro-dance tracks... including an old Marc Almond song.

Kerry: Mechanical and soulless rework of Laura Branigan's "Self Control". Inconsequential DJ music.

Nader: Glowsticks are tools of the devil.

Other Guy: Now more than ever, disco sucks. Marc Almond minus the cabaret is useless.

Steve Forbert - Just Like There's Nothin' To It

Bush: The rockin' country-folk singer slows it down for a beautiful, intimate and introspective album.

Kerry: His voice has gotten rougher, like Dylan gargling glass. Slow, but damn good album.

Nader: Well written songs, very mellow record..

Other Guy: Decent songwriting that could have been a bit more moving if it had more "oomph".

See-I - Dinner Of Herb

Bush: Overproduced dancehall and soul ska. Sort of music that ruins good movies.

Kerry: Upbeat dub from thievery Corporation's rhythm masters. They're like the good evil Milli Vanilli.

Nader: Ravi Shankar reggae? Mellow and ethereal reggae, it kid of just drifts along. Mostly.

Other Guy: Reggae and dancehall mixed with Indian rhythms. You might hear this in the Buddha Bar.

Ari Hest - Someone To Tell

Bush: Great rainy day songs, fans of Counting Crows take notice. Dynamic, introspective, A/C style rock.

Kerry: Is this the soundtrack to Dawson's Creek? I wouldn't know... I've never seen it.

Nader: If Darius Rucker was white... Oh, wait. He is white. Overly emotional and insincere.

Other Guy: One John Mayer is more than enough.

Jeremiah and the Red Eyes - Red-Eyed And Restless

Bush: Southern California blues... Not too gritty... some good chops and nice vibe, though..

Kerry: Decent bar-blues rock. Real nice flourishes. Hints at authentic without claiming to be.

Nader: Watered down blues. Not terrible by any means, but wholly unremarkable.

Other Guy: Review of this band cancelled due to lack of talent.

Jenny Queen - Girls Who Cry Need Cake

Bush: Nice slower chick folk-rock. A midwestern Jewel without the annoying screeching and more soul.

Kerry: Nice Jewel-like voice, but very sweet. She keeps it rpetty low-key and that's best.

Nader: We get dozens of albums exactly like this each month. They all sound the same.

Other Guy: Jewel, Sarah McLachlin, Lilith Fair goddess rock..

Kava Kava - Maui

Bush: Uptempo party funk from the U.K. - Colol grooves, phat beats, funky sounds. Awesome feel-good music..

Kerry: Better disco through technology? It ain't Jeff Beck, but I guess it works.

Nader: Funky, heavy synth, Brit R&B-Hip Hop dance vibe.

Enedina - Enedina

Bush: A dreamier, mellower Fiona Apple, with a relaxing, husky voice..

Kerry: Smoky voiced chanteuse croons smooth indie-rock along Fiona Apple lines. Serene, pleasant, beautiful.

Nader: Down periscope. Dive Dive! Mellow vocal jazz-pop like Norah Jones. So why don't I like it more?

Other Guy: See Jenny Queen review.

This Specific Dream - This Specific Dream

Bush: Instrumental tracks filled with organic sounds and interesting concepts. Not easy enough for background music..

Kerry: Experimental, jam-bandish... no vocals. Doh! Sounds like I missed my bus.

Nader: Droning, go nowhere music to listen to while stoned or bleeding to death in the bathtub.

Other Guy: Music that almost goes somewhere, then doesn't.

Dave DeCastro - Plowing The Clouds

Bush: Dark, sonic rock edging towards experimental walls of noise VS. bright easy pop.

Kerry: Shoegaze pop, like Greg Strange fronting The Zero People. Why can't he pirate photshop?

Nader: What exactly is being showcased here? Songwriting? Singing? Playing? Talented, but is there a point?

Other Guy: I knew we were in trouble when I saw the album cover.

Eric Anders - Songs For Wayward Days

Bush: Excellently produced songs with intelligent approach to current affairs. Leave out politics, and I'm in!

Kerry: Didn't make me feel anything at all.

Nader: Beads, flowers, wind in the hair... yet, too 80's to be 70's.

This Song Is A Mess But So Am I - Church Point, LA

Bush: Angst-ridden homemade EBM, huge chip on shoulder. Some nice music, a bit rough though.

Kerry: The soundtrack for trepenning. Go ahead, let the evil spirits out, I dare you.

Nader: Dark, interesting expression of the grieving process. Conceptually interesting, but not very musical. Sad.

Other Guy: This noise is making the dog go bonkers.