When your arrangements are razor-sharp, your moods mercurial and psychedelic, and your melodies constantly off-kilter, you’re probably a Dutch band like Certain Animals.

The Just Joans keep it in the family, and they keep it fairly civil, covering their lethally caustic Scottish wit in a layer of pleasant pop.

Robyn Hitchcock (Yep Roc). Review by Bob Pomeroy.

Music from the Unrealized Film Script: Dusk at Cubist Castle/ Black Foliage: Animation Music Volume One (Chunklet Industries). Review by Carl F Gauze.

Impressionistic Michigan documentarians Frontier Ruckus make time in their infinite tour schedule to help Aaron Shaul better understand the opaque beauty of their newest album Deadmalls & Nightfalls.

Scott Adams finds this compelling history of Merge Records, the underdog label that beat the odds and succeeded, to be insanely readable.

Signal Morning (Cloud Recordings). Review by Tim Wardyn.

Délivrance (Leaf Label). Review by Matthew Moyer.

Dark Smaland (Orange Twin). Review by Matthew Moyer.

Matthew Moyer gets all dreeeeeeeamy with Portland’s upstart dreampop army, pacific UV. They’ve just released an album that rivals Sigur Ros for lushness - what’s next?

Let’s Decompose and Enjoy Assembling! (Twisted Knife). Review by Al Pergande.

So Gone (Misra). Review by Bob Pomeroy.

Brian Heater discusses campfires and other people’s music with the enigmatic Matt Pond.

Born to Be a Motorcycle (Asthmatic Kitty). Review by Aaron Shaul.

Cat Spectacular (Microindie). Review by Aaron Shaul.

Central Hug/Friendarmy/Fractaldunes (Discos Mariscos). Review by Rob Levy.

Old Enough 2 Know Better: 15 Years of Merge Records (Merge). Review by Aaron Shaul.

The Weight of Flight (WARM). Review by Stein Haukland.

Ringodom or Proctor (Greyday). Review by Terry Eagan.

Yoko (Velocette). Review by Stein Haukland.