It was my pleasure this month to finally meet our esteemed leader, Mr. Fufkin, at a Pernice Brothers gig in Boston, along with fellow scribe Eliot Wilder. Music geeks that we are, we spent a good amount of time standing in the back talking about music, running through pop, punk, alt.country, folk, and every different genre we could think to shoehorn into the conversation. That’s what you get with us, folks. Mr. Fufkin may dress better than Eliot and I (sorry Eliot), but he is cut from the same big-headphone-wearin’, T-shirt craving, vinyl-mongering cloth.

And on that note, playing a gig at the Middle East in Cambridge on Joe Pernice’s birthday, the band turned in a note-perfect, if somewhat short, set spackled with rootsy pop ditties from their latest, The World Won’t End. The Chamber Strings opened the show. And though it took me a few tunes to really peg them, anyone whose complete catalogue is available on vinyl thick enough to use as a manhole cover can’t be all bad. In fact, they proved themselves adept both as retro-fashion clothes horses and retro-pop musicians. With Month of Sundays, their latest release, they seem to be channeling Morrissey’s moping visage through the Beach Boys’ endless summer vibes. Whatever head Stringer Kevin Junior was moping about over by the cigarette machine, I hope he’s gotten over it. Buck up, Beetlejuice. It’ll be okay.

The Posies closed the show with a loud, high-energy set. I’m fairly ignorant of the Posies’ history, which will automatically make me the scorn of my fellow music geeks and force me into the closet here in Boston. But I was surprised at how much punch they had live, and that their chops were so clean. Maybe I won’t throw out that CD single of “Dream All Day” I swiped from my old college radio station years ago.

In Web site news, Say Zuzu has finally bought their own domain and opened up a swanky new site at www.sayzuzu.com. The band has also just finished recording their new album in Memphis at Ardent Studios, with a tentative October release date. They are still deciding what label the album will be on. But, if you just can’t wait for new Zuzu, go to the Web site and pick up the latest from HogMawl, Mr. Cliff’s side project.

If you’re tastes run more toward eclectic indie rock, pick up Flying, the latest from Boston’s own, The Pee Wee Fist. Head Pee Wee, or most visible Pee Wee, Pete Fitzpatrick opened up for Ryan Adams a while back, where I saw him perform some of these tunes solo. He handed me a couple of demo discs when I talked to him and went back to talking to Stacey Taylor, who runs the Hellcountry series around here. I had to leave before I could thank Mr. Pete, but here, I will - Thank you, Mr. Pete. The Pee Wee Fist is tight and sonically daring, and this album reflects that well. Pick it up at Kimchee Records (www.kimcheerecords.com) or visit The Pee Wee Fist’s site at www.thepeeweefist.com.

Also this month, I had the pleasure to see Peter Mulvey (www.petermulvey.com) play Melissa Morris’s Sunday Night Singer-Songwriter Series (www.melissamorris.com) at the Burren Pub in Somerville. Mulvey is always bright and engaging, as he was this night. Sometimes, his audience even rises up to meet him, as after one story about watching Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Ever aware of the politics of a folk crowd, Mulvey ended the story with a half-hearted public service announcement that “violence is bad”, and was pleasantly surprised when someone in the crowd shouted back, “But in a good way.” If you haven’t heard Mulvey yet, check him out.

I also got to see Frank Morey at the Burren, with country songstress Heather Waters. Morey is a rough and tumble performer whose gruff voice sometimes echoes Tom Waits, and whose hard luck stories are full of humor and grit. Waters, who has made the move from Boston to Nashville, can belt out a country tune like no one’s business, and is sure to latch on somewhere on Music Row.

I’m lucky enough now as a writer that all sorts of folks are sending me advance copies of things. The two stand-outs at the moment are Robbie Fulks’ Couples in Trouble and Up Here by Buffalo Tom’s Bill Janovtiz. Fulks is really stretching his boundaries with the album, moving from style to style, but he’s proving himself more than flexible enough to handle the transitions. Each song represents a different couple, and each couple has their own personality. Janovitz is making his mark as a true singer-songwriter. He’s swinging for Waits and Costello territory, but that’s a tough league to break into. Even so, Up Here is a sleeper, with great songs and a couple of new directions for Janovitz, far from the electric blister of his full time gig. Also worth noting: The Songcatcher Soundtrack features a young actress names Emmy Rossum who threatens to steal not only the movie but the soundtrack as well, singing one tune from the movie and a duet with Dolly Parton.

Some important release dates (for me, anyway):

Elvis Costello (Reissues), Spike, My Aim is True, All This Useless Beauty - August 7th
Grant Lee Phillips, Mobilize - August 14th
Alison Kraus and Union Station, New Favorite - August 14th
Bill Janovitz, Up Here - August 21st
Robbie Fulks, Couples in Trouble - August 21st
Dallas Wayne, Here I Am In Dallas - August 21st
Wayne Hancock, A Town Blues - September 4th
Bob Dylan Love and Theft - September 11th
Robert Earl Keen, Gravitational Forces - September 11th
Ben Folds, Rockin’ the Suburbs - September 11th
Rocky Scaggs, History of the Future - September 11th
Ryan Adams, Gold - September 25th
Tenacious D, Tenacious D - September 25th

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