Young Fresh Fellows, "Barky's Spiritual Store"
There was a nine year break between 1992's It's Low Beat Time and 2001's Because We Hate You, with Scott McCaughey spending time in the interim both touring with R.E.M. and spending time with his other band, the Minus 5. And when this album came out, it was actually a double album, with the other album from the Minus 5. So, all McCaughey, but with different people accompanying him.
The Fellows side plays it pretty straight - it's the usual pleasant goofy rock that they're known for, without particularly standing out. It's good! I like it! But it's not where I'd start with for the Fellows (or with the Minus 5).
Lollipop, "7 And 7 Is"
I believe last time, I said something like "fuck yeah, garage rock". And, come on! Fuck yeah! Also, this album is called Dog Piss On Dog! Who doesn't love that!
Courtney Barnett, "Need A Little Time"
Courtney Barnett's first album, Sometimes I Sit And Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit was pretty universally acclaimed when it came out, as a thoroughly charming and smart indie rock album with a delightful slacker attitude. Her solo followup, Tell Me How You Really Feel, dials up the production a little bit, is a little more confident, but loses just a little bit of the charm. It's a very good record, but maybe doesn't feel like quite the same breath of fresh air.
Tombs, "November Wolves"
Tombs followed up 2014's Savage Gold, which was excellent, by changing almost the entire lineup and retooling on The Grand Annihilation. It's still the same recognizable mix of doom, sludge, and black metal, with different songs kind of presenting different aspects of the sound. The individual songs work, but I'm not sure it all totally hangs together as a whole.
Think Tree, "Monday A.M. First Thing"
Back in 1991 or so, one of the things I pursued musically was trying to find bands similar to They Might Be Giants. So I tried listening to more or less every quirky band that rolled down the pike, and frankly, thought most of them sucked. My musical tastes continued to evolve and I stopped trying to find another TMBG (but never, ever stopped loving them), but the collection is littered with a handful of records like this one. There's not really another band like them because nobody else has Johns Linnell and Flansburgh writing songs (but mostly Linnell).