Islands in the Stream: 7/24/25

"Cross Your Mind," Corduroy Brown featuring Kindred Valley
Corduroy Brown describes his music as "feel-good Appalachia," and while I suspect anyone hoping for Appalachian flavors in this particular track will come away disappointed, "Cross Your Mind" lives up to the first half of that description with a gently loping arrangement that highlights Brown's knack for hum-along melodies and tight harmonies.

"Alone and Forsaken," Pebbledash
Sometimes, when I sit down to write these posts, I can't remember why I picked a particular song for inclusion. "Alone and Forsaken" had me feeling that way for a few minutes, but when it sailed off into a galaxy of aggro guitars around the 5:30 mark, it all came flooding back. Best played loud, loud, very loud.

"Can't Say No," Lowgold
"Can't Say No" sounds a little like a demo that the Gin Blossoms might have recorded while they were in one of their mopier moods. That probably doesn't come across like a recommendation, but even at their most glum, the Gin Blossoms have served up some truly hooky stuff, and this song is catchy enough to make a bad mood feel like a good time.

"Be On Your Way," Two Harbors
Based on the evidence presented by "Be On Your Way," Two Harbors are peddling a sound that's heavily Oasis-inspired but filtered through a thin Minneapolis lens, which isn't something I ever would have suspected I wanted to hear, but here we are. Although I haven't heard much of their other stuff, what little I have heard suggests the guys in the band listened to a lot of college radio in the '80s or '90s; the next song that came up after "Be On Your Way" ended had a heavy Smiths vibe. Not a band you'll want to seek out if you prize originality, I suppose, but they do what they do pretty well.

"The Paradise Awaits," CJ Briscoe
Yeah, CJ Briscoe might be just another guy with an acoustic guitar and a soft spot for gentle melodies, but every musical diet needs to make room for songs that sound like swinging in a summer hammock. "The Paradise Awaits" goes well with ice tea and the distant hum of AC units.

"Make It Right," the Burley Griffin
There's a slight Crowded House tilt to "Make It Right," especially if you're thinking about the band's later material. It makes a certain amount of sense, given that the Burley Griffin hail from Canberra; perhaps if they were from Auckland, the similarities would be even more striking. This song's mournful drift is more immediately memorable than the rather melody-averse stuff Neil Finn has favored over the last 25 years of his career, but you can still picture it nestled toward the end of an alternate Woodface or Together Alone.

"The Contours of Your Butt," Josh Kempen
Let's be real: I was going to recommend this track no matter what it sounded like. It's just a nice bonus that it turned out to be a charming little dollop of denim-clad folk-pop. I concede that it might be a tad too Lumineers-esque for the more stomp 'n' holler-averse among us, but the extra points it earns for that title make up the difference for me.

"Draw the Line," the Moon City Masters
I came across these guys courtesy of Instagram, where I guess the algorithm knows me well enough to know I'm old enough to have my ears perk up whenever I encounter something new that manages to honestly evoke the Camaro-scented shape and feel of classic AOR. I'm not sure the whole record really holds up, but for at least four and a half minutes, you can picture the Moon City Masters opening for Boston in 1977.

"The Garden," Lightheaded
Here's another act that crept up past the 10,000 monthly listener mark somewhere between the time I tabbed their song for Islands in the Stream and the time I actually sat down to write the goddamn post. Well, whatever — "The Garden" blends jangle and baroque pop so smoothly that I refuse to begrudge Lightheaded their recent surge in relative popularity. Charming as all get out.

"State Line Fireworks Outlet," Jonathan Rundman
Journalistic ethics compel me to point out that I know Jonathan Rundman a little — he appeared on the Record Player a couple of years ago, among other connections we've made over the years — so I'm biased in his favor. On the other hand, the pleasantly punky energy that's wired through "State Line Fireworks Outlet" would make me smile even if I didn't occasionally trade emails with the guy who wrote and performed the song. Tons of fun, especially if you happen to live in an area dotted with state line fireworks outlets.