Chicago-based Ezra Furman & The Harpoons are due to release their third studio album, Mysterious Power, April 5th on Red Parlor Records.  In addition to their 2 earlier self-releases, Banging Down The Doors and Inside The Human Body were put out on Minty Fresh Records in 2007 and 2008.

This singer-songwriter driven indie rock quad is made up of frontman Ezra Furman, Job Mukkada (bass), Adam Abrutyn (drums) and Andrew Langer (guitar).  Furman’s voice has its technical imperfections, but the controlled tone in his trembling vocals pushes through to an engaging execution.

Aunt Martha’s stunning EP, Bloodshot, is a five track follow-up to their 2009 self-released full-length, Candymaker.  Everything about this epic effort captures just how much the [now] trio has evolved since forming less than 2 years ago.

Bloodshot is undeniably bigger and better.  Producer Chuck Brody [other credits include Bear Hands, Ra Ra Riot, Galactic, Tegan and Sara] helped to elevate their overall sound while still maintaining the integrity of their individual strengths.  The result is a much more polished kick-drum thumping, violin plucking take on the attention-grabbing rawness we loved on Candymaker.

Release Date: 1/25/11
Label: Warner Bros.

Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam has done it again with his 4th studio album, Kiss Each Other Clean.  Although this time around he has created an even more dynamic sound than ever before.  This LP is infested with sassy sax solos, doo-wopping back-up vocals [which literally appear in "Half Moon"], key-induced psychedelic curiosity and funky bass lines.  The poetic storytelling that Beam is best known for still remains the key ingredient that holds it all together, but this is undoubtedly his most experimental release to date.

On March 1st the Canadian co-ed indie rock trio, The Rural Alberta Advantage, will be releasing their sophomore full-length on Saddle Creek Records.  Departing is a much-anticipated follow-up to Hometowns, the widely received album that they put out themselves in 2008 before Saddle Creek picked it up and re-released it in 2009.

Twenty-something Texan, Sarah Jaffe, released her debut full-length, Suburban Nature, on Kirtland Records in the spring of 2010.  This indie folk-pop follow-up to her 2008 self-released EP, Even Born Again, is an effortlessly intimate confession of her teenage years.  Listening to the album in full makes you feel as though you just snuck into her bedroom and read her diary from cover to cover or eavesdropped on a phone call between her and her best friend.  It’s that natural and endearing.

Nothing rings in a new year better than listening to buzzy beats that people can’t stop chatting about. Some amazing bands are due to release [what I am sure will be] great albums this winter. I’ll be reviewing each of them individually as their drop dates near – but for now be sure to take a look at the list, jot down when they hit and get excited about the year of music ahead!

If the Beatles and Ben Folds had a random illegitimate indie-folk music baby, it would be The Head and the Heart.

This 6-piecer from Seattle encompasses everything that these hypothetical baby daddies have done so well in the past.  The catchy pop melodies are driven by speedy, focused piano playing and flawless three part harmonies.  But when they whip out any hand-held percussion they can find, the additional texture makes it sound even fresher and more interesting.

Rural Missouri bred Nathaniel Rateliff’s well-received LP, In Memory of Loss, was released in April on Rounder Records.  It’s jazz inspired folkiness has earned him [and his band mates previously known as "The Wheelers"] much recognition on Best of 2010 lists, as well as from music critics and lovers alike.

Once a solo project for Ari Picker, Lost in the Trees, has evolved into a full blown orchestra.  After he became a classically trained musician at the Berklee School of Music in Boston, Ari gathered up a handful or two of talented musicians in North Carolina to help him create the All Alone in an Empty House album that was released in 2008.  He still remains the key composer/songwriter of the band’s theatrical classical and modern day American folk masterpiece.  Lucky for us, this perfect array of genres has resulted in the dramatic, yet comforting sound that soothes the soul.