Houndmouth/Lucy Dacus

With a flair for the deeply American chord progression, Houndmouth taps into the collective consciousness of the dusty fringes of the Midwest. Their most recent album, Little Neon Limelight, has a looser, more open feel to it than previous outings. “For No One,” accented with ghostly backing vocals and driven by twangy acoustic guitar, sees a laid-back band indebted to a life on the road. That’s soon followed up by “Honey Slider,” where reverb-drenched lead guitar works it way across a building synth line and harmonized vocals. The band’s debut album, From The Hills Below The City, similarly is a true delight, complete with folksy fun, heartfelt musicianship and nods to the country-tinged legacy that lay within their shadow. (Eric Sandy)