Keeping up with Jason Karaban.

With all of their artists I've reviewed and come to enjoy over the past several years, it's impossible to keep up with them all, especially when they release singles or EPs. Usually I stumble on to these releases by accident, and that's what happened with some new music that came out earlier this year from Jason Karaban.

Karaban released Sobriety Kills at the end of 08/beginning of 09, and he's followed that up with a digital-only EP (Mayfly) and a digital-only single ("Succeed 101"). They're of a piece with his earlier work, so this is less a review than it is a heads-up to anyone like me who likes Karaban but wasn't aware these releases were out.

Mayfly on iTunes | "Succeed 101" on iTunes | MySpace

J-Day!

Like they say on Sesame Street, this post is brought to you by the letter "J". Today we bring you two singer-songwriters named Jason and Jesse, and aside from their first names beginning with the same letter, they have a similar style that pop fans will find pleasing.

Jason Karaban-Sobriety Kills. LA's Jason Karaban splashed onto the scene in 2006 with his debut disc Doomed to Make Choices, and then issued another disc of songs not included on the disc titled Leftovers, which may have been even better than the proper release. Reminiscent at times of artists like Micheal Penn and Willie Wisely, Karaban serves up another quality release with Sobriety Kills. Highlights include the plaintive title track, the piano-based pop of "Middle of the Storm", the honky-pop of "Because I Love You", and the waltzy ballad "All In a Day's Dream". No sophomore jinx here.

CD Baby | MySpace | eMusic | Listen at Lala | iTunes

Middle Of The Storm - Jason Ka...

Jesse Sprinkle-Surrounded by Lights. Jesse Sprinkle has become a known quantity in the pop community, delivering introspective, thoughtful tunes with a spiritual underpinning, and Surrounded by Lights, his latest, is no exception. Opener "Where Diamonds Grow", likely inspired by his recent work in Africa with the Ugandan Water Project, is a stunning number that builds slowly and works its way into an Elliott Smith/Michael Penn-like buildup. Meanwhile, "Longing for the Ordinary" is an impressive midtempo rocker, "Better Places" is a fine jangly ballad, and "Wait or Want" is singer/songwriter pop perfection. Between this disc and the one above, you'd be hard-pressed to find two better albums of their kind this year.

CD Baby | MySpace | iTunes