What the CL Music Team is spinning this fine Monday to rocket launch us into the work week… To check out last previous entries, click here.

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Ray – Ben Harper, Give Till It’s Gone (2011)
His first two LPs — Welcome to the Cruel World and Fight For Your Mind — have been around for the better part of twenty-years, but on his latest solo disc (and first since 2006’s Both Sides of the Gun) Ben Harper shows that he can still go it alone despite temporarily leaving his original backing band — The Innocent Criminals — to join forces with Relentless 7 and Fistful of Mercy. The album hits stores are digital retailers tomorrow, and while lead single “Rock N’ Roll Is Free” is an upbeat, straight ahead rocker, it’s songs like “I Will Not Be Broken” and “Dirty Little Lover” that prove Harper still has it. The latter showcases fiery lap steel and is one of the best songs that the 41-year-old California native has released in a while. In fact, it’s one of the best I’ve heard all year.

Julie – Military Junior, Sundays and Sadder Days (2011)

Elawgrrl — How Dare You, The King, The Clown, and The Colonel (2011)
Hailing from Orlando, How Dare You has been playing the punk/hardcore circuits (including several FEST performances) and steadily growing a dedicated fanbase for their creative take on post-hardcore. In brief, How Dare
You's second release is top notch melodic hardcore. Check out three tracks — "Horizon," "Marianna" and "Cold Shoulders" — that are streaming now at Punknews.org.

This article appears in May 12-18, 2011.

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