Puerto Muerto’s album “Drumming For Pistols.” Hard to pin down, but it is vaguely rootsy, melodic, and uses a lot repetition to lull the listener into a groove. No FCCs. I recommend tracks 4, 8.

1. Song of the Moon: Simple two-chord melody. Builds its groove on repeated words and melodies. Female singer. (3:30)
2. Tamar: mid-tempo, male verse / female chorus. lots of background vocals on the chorus, about some sort of sexual indiscretion. (2:34)
3. Drumming for Pistols: an uptempo song that enchants through repeated lines of “drumming for pistols” (2:49)
4. *The Bell Ringer: Begins with bells appropriately enough. Slow acoustic guitar plucks, saccharine, swaying voice. Some strings fill out the song. (4:22)
5. Arcadia: Nice soaring chorus with background vocal melody. (3:49)
6. Little Recourse: Low male vocals and a basic guitar riff. (3:01)
7. Vermillion Sky: mid-tempo. Male and female vocals interact on the chorus, over crunchy guitars. (4:10)
8. *Hurting Now: Low-voiced guy again. More sentimental than the other songs. “I still feel for you / even if it ain’t rosie, it’ll have to do” (3:46)
9. Tanze: Bluesy and upbeat. (2:57)
10. Settle Down Belinda: Slight country tinge. (4:29)
11. Beautiful Woman with Shining Black Hair: A sort of waltzy field (2:15)
12. Seven Souls: Slow guitar based ballad, some hums in the background. (3:11)
13. Goodbye to the End: A nice way to end the album. The woman’s voice, with an acoustic guitar. (3:42)

Reviewed by Gorilla Man Jr. 12/14/11