Stereogum — On Foreign Lands, Denton quartet Teenage Cool Kids plowed through messy anthems like the Descendents via clunky ’90s lo-fi and slacker indie rock (and Small Brown Bike). After listening to a couple of the songs from the forthcoming Denton After Sun... more info

Guardian Music — Last week was all about making a grand entrance. This time, it's all about making a grand re-entranceWell, bless my soul, I'm the son and the heir/You were working as a waitress in dismal, dull affairs.I didn't quite know how to start this week's blo... more info

Lost In Your Inbox — You all know that music is one of the passions of my life, but did you know that politics is a close second? I love politics. I watch the news all the time and listen to NPR and read the blogs and write letters to my representatives and even ... more info

LargeHeartedBoy — This morning I was contemplating the week's contest prizes, and my wife queued up one of my favorite albums, the Silver Jews classic American Water. As we discussed songwriters who are also published poets, I told her about my... more info

JamBase — Why? To Release New Album Eskimo Snow Why? A year and a half after releasing the acclaimed LP Alopecia, Why? returns with their fourth album, Eskimo Snow (out September 22). The two records are each other's perfect foil: while last year's rel... more info

LargeHeartedBoy — The Observer interviews author Jay McInerney. At The Poetry Foundation, author Ed Park examines Silver Jews frontman Dave Berman's comics and doodles. Publishers Weekly examines the phenomenon of zombie fiction. At Amazon MP3: Explosions in the ... more info

411 Mania — With a new name, we examine the media circus created by death and pre-existing fame, along with news about Pixies, Beck, R.E.M, Kanye West, The Beach Boys, Paul McCartney, Silver Jews and more! more info

Pop Candy — If you visit my apartment, you'll notice several paintings and photographs on the walls. But you'll also see quite a few concert posters from shows my husband and I have attended: Cat Power, Neutral Milk Hotel, Silver Jews. A new... more info

Guardian Music — This week School of rock reaches past the merely miserable to explore the anatomy of depressionBlues and country, two of the genres most associated with the misery of the human condition, still speak to us today. In the beginning the Lead Bellys and ... more info

Said the Gramophone — When I met Amber Albrecht, I was wearing my suit. I had just been at a job interview. I was visiting my friend Kit, who had an exhibition on, and as we were talking this small woman came in. She had brought fancy markers and, I think, her lunch. Some... more info