Brian: Don't be fooled by Guiltmaker's home on Kiss of Death Records; if you're expecting filthy basement punk rock, you'll be sorely disappointed. That label released the band's 2006 EP, Driven by Arms, which was promising enough. However, Dilemmas seems like a huge growth for the band judging by the songs they've been posting on their MySpace page. Guiltmaker inject a bit of atmosphere and deep emotional textures into their new songs: picture a more energetic Elliott, or Circa Survive about two octaves lower. Be sure to give "Lost Ship," "Life Given Switch" and "Battle Mountain" a try if this sounds like quality.
Adam: I just can't get enough of the new Born Ruffians full length. The Toronto three piece plays jangly indie rock with enough sing–along freak–folk thrown in to sound great lined up to your Akron/Family records. Red Yellow and Blue came out just recently on England's Warp Records and it's definately worth a look. Just make sure you toss out Warp's reputation as an electronic music label, as this is nowhere close. You should go hit up "Hummingbird" and "Kurt Vonnegut" at MySpace. Or click below to check out the video for "Hummingbird."