Carla Bozulich

After recent events left me feeling a little, shall we say, agitated, I went searching for some cynical sounds to get me through Wednesday. What I found gave meaning to my gritted teeth: the singularly powerful Carla Bozulich careening through a nine-minute version of one of the greatest protest songs ever written — not to mention one of Dylan’s best songs, period. When Wednesday gave way to a cold, rainy Thursday, “Lonesome Roads” and the fabulous Willie Nelson cover “Blue Eyes Cryin’ in the Rain” were just the nudge of strained melancholy I needed. Now that Friday’s here, the woman who channels Patsy Cline, Janis Joplin, Tom Waits (there’s even a Waits cover here) and something nobody had heard until she wailed for herself, should help you make it through a long, lonely weekend. I know she’ll help me.

(P.S. There’s plenty more on her website from her many side projects — if you have the bandwidth, it’s worth your time.)

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Vetiver

Folk is well on its way to becoming the sound du jour thanks to the likes of Andy Cabic and the group of friends and neighbors he enlists (Devendra Banhart, Hope Sandoval, Joanna Newsome, and Colm O’Ciosoig) in crafting a collection of acoustic gems lined with daydream edges. An extravagantly simple melody that you can really sink your ears into.

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