On the title track from Afterlife Parade frontman Quinn Erwin’s new Living in America EP, Erwin waxes political over a hooting choir and some catchy riffs that are squeaky clean but never feel any less true for it. "Gray" is a more somber number, faking out a lead-up to some kind of grand climax and instead veering into a bit of stripped-down emotional crooning at the pivotal moment. It’s a different type of songwriting than we’re used to hearing around these parts, but I think it’s a refreshing change and one well worth your precious listening time. –Austin Phy

If lo-fi post-punk with a sense of driving urgency is your jam (and it certainly is mine), then Best Friend’s newest EP deserves a spot on every summer nighttime listening mix you burn for that special someone. That girl with the dark leather jacket who’s way too cool for you, but you just can’t stop picturing yourself driving off into the Miami sunset with her right there in your DeLorean? That’s the one. She’ll dig it. You’ll dig it. –Austin Phy

The self-titled debut EP from Heavy Breather falls somewhere on the emotional spectrum near mournful, but it’s pulled out of self-wallowing by the sheer amount of soul going on here and a handful of vocal-range’s-end, throaty yells like Prince going for broke. When the album isn’t crying over love lost, it’s carried by a bass so slippery you need not even bother trying to pin it down into some real candlelight sensuality. Give it a listen below and see what it can do for you. –Austin Phy

It’s no secret that I’m generally into checking out music that student bands from MTSU are putting out. Sure, the top-notch production skills may not be there yet, but there’s a pure sort of expression that comes from an environment that leans on learning and growing rather than "making it" in a bigger music scene. The latest MTSU-born project worth your time is Bread by Snake Cheney, an album that is mercifully devoid of 70’s mustache rock covers despite what the title may lead you to believe. The Mac Demarco comparisons on some of the tracks are unavoidable, but there’s a bit more drive to be found here than the reigning jester of the indie rock royal court ever got around to mustering up. –Austin Phy

Harsh and heavy. Wild and wily. Absolutely head-crushingly relentless. There are plenty of ways to describe the self-titled debut from Husband Stitch, but they all center around a general lack of mercy and a mild bit of intimidation that is to be expected by the listener. All the fury, the indignation, the raw power, it’s all there. If you’re angry about something—and if you aren’t, you must not be paying attention—then the stream below could be just the fuzzy catharsis you need. –Austin Phy

After a weeklong, sickness-induced break, I thought I’d come back with a handful of music for y’all. What I didn’t expect is that so many of my picks would come from the family of "psych rock." And like many real families, where your sister can be a lawyer while you’re up at 3am in a haze concocting recipes out of stale saltine crackers and various chip dips (the only ingredients you have in the house), the apples may not fall far from the tree but they can sure end up a ways off from one another. Rain Drop Garden from the Esskays is out there and verby, seemingly the only pre-reqs for being "psych," but it’s flowers all the way down. Jangly and poppy, never too demanding (but not boring by any means either), it’s an all-seasons offering of catchy numbers that wander but never lose sight of the path. Either way, take a shovel out to Rain Drop Garden and get to digging. -Austin Phy

Fool. That’s a band name I can get behind. It’s simple, not too ornate…it just seems like it would look good on a poster, you know?  But maybe I’m fixating on the wrong thing, because it turns out these guys are every bit as good at making music as they are naming bands. Fool’s debut is psychedelic in a way that said descriptor isn’t used all too often now. It isn’t grimy, it isn’t fuzzy, it isn’t a bit salty from all the surf that frequently gets mixed in, but is instead more akin to The Zombies, Love, or—take note, as this is the one-in-a-hundred time I use this comparison as a good thing—The Grateful Dead. Whatever it is, really, it’s one of the more unique releases from Nashville in a while. –Austin Phy  

 You’re OK is something like the soundtrack to a high school prom in an alternate reality where the Cold War heated up and everybody ended up all melted and a little off-center. There’s no anger, no aggression, just a cool, goopy go-with-the-flow relaxation the whole way through. It’s lo-fi goodness as good as it gets, weird but not weird just to be weird, and uncomfortable but far from incomprehensible. There are moments of beauty, moments of breaking point tension, and an 8-minute slow burner that closes it all out with a sense of finality. Check out whatever kind of strange brew Mickee Poole’s got going below. There’s a solid chance you’ll like it. –Austin Phy

Summer isn’t all sunshine and icy drinks with fruit in them. No matter what The Beach Boys tried to tell you, it’s a season for loss as much as any other. A song like "Cruel Summer" works at taking a different approach to an overplayed trope, and the cover from The Daybreaks’ camp pulls double duty. Fully indulging in the bleak sorrow suggested in the composition of the 1980s original, it’s clearly a well thought out effort that doesn’t take the gimmicky style-swap change of some covers or the miserably by-the-numbers approach of many others, but instead explores the intent of the original in a meaningful way and adds to what was already present. This version, held aloft by a restrained instrumentation and hauntingly cool harmonies, is like a nice bit of shade from the heat. If you want to get into the summer spirit but aren’t sold on the idea of the season as a three month party, check out the video below. –Austin Phy

I, for one, am thrilled that we’re all coming around to recognize that "dad rock" doesn’t have to be a snarky ol’ put-down. Some folks were way ahead of the curve on that, though. Take for example Cordovas, whose 2012 debut is proudly dad rock as hell and sticks the landing. Between the Eagles-like harmonies and some heavy touches of The Band, the sound is a little like the greatest supergroup that never existed—classic, but a totally unique take on a sound. This album’s a little on the old side but just now coming to my attention as the guys are gearing up for some extensive touring and new recordings due out before all too long. They’ll be on the road for a little while after some recent appearances around town, but you can catch them in September at Americana Fest alongside some fresh-faced up-and-comers with names like John Prine and Steve Earle. –Austin Phy

Generally uneasy and slyly experimental, when Rich Ruth’s Thruster settles down for a moment, it likes to ease into a minimal funky groove like if Parliament had temporarily replaced George Clinton with a Gameboy. But that’s only one sound of many to be found here—there’s off-kilter folk, off-kilter new wave, off-kilter world influences, and other assorted sounds that generally leave the kilter at home, whatever that is in the first place. It’s an enjoyable listen all the way through, sparse but never short on new ideas, and you can give it a listen below. –Austin Phy

Rose Park by Harpooner is probably a solid approximation of what it’s like to do psychedelics on the beach. Upbeat but unabashedly weird, the singles available from Rose Park sound like Harpooner is going to be working with their own hopped-up version of that mid-2000s Strokes sound that seems to be making a comeback. The album will be available in full digitally or on a, one has to assume, beautiful transparent red vinyl on June 24. –Austin Phy