Sub Pop might be my favorite label going today. In the two years that I have been writing for Stylus, an album from the Seattle label has finished high in my top ten albums of the year, with last year’s release from the Fruit Bats (The Ruminant Band) taking the number one spot. The quality of albums released through the label‘s history is very high, and as a result, my expectations get raised every time a new release enters my CD player. Kelley Stoltz, thankfully did not disappoint me. On his eighth album, Stoltz offers the listener more of his 1960’s inspired lo-fi sound. He is still a one man band for the most part, though he has help from others for the background instruments. For the majority of the album, I can picture Stoltz sitting on his living room floor playing the guitar. As mentioned earlier, Stoltz lets his influences shine throughout the album. There is a heavy heaping of Ray Davies, sprinkled in with some David Bowie esque glam, and some Brian Wilson inspired psychedelic music for good measure. A common criticism leveled at Stoltz is that he rarely feels original; he is more content to pay homage to his influences rather than showing what he can do as an artist. But, while I can see this criticism, Stoltz’s enthusiasm for his music is enough to make the familiar feel original. (Sub Pop) Charles Lefebvre