Happy Hour (!) Band of Horses. Infinite Arms. $5.00

A mature, contemplative work from Band of Horses and quite possibly my favorite road-trip music of 2010, Infinite Arms begs for wide-open spaces that offer plenty of room to think…and think…and think.

In keeping with Band of Horses’ most recent works, Infinite Arms is not Earth-shattering, but rather predictably well-crafted and laced with pearls of life wisdom.  Since I’ve been imbibing with family for two days, the following analogy seems appropriate (and slightly cheesy):  Infinite Arms can be likened to a well-aged bottle of Mourvédre, a unique grape that is usually blended with more popular or powerful uva, but when aged and singled out it can be a supremely complete, yet flawed enough to make it nearly perfect (a theory thoroughly explored in Natalie Portman’s vehicle to Oscar-dome, Black Swan). Buy Infinite Arms here (or up there).

Happy Hour (!) Junip. Fields. $5.00.

Seductive. Unique. Beautiful. Warm, but not cozy. Smells like freshly sanded walnut with a hint of one-hour-old Narcissus. I’m pretty much in love with the way Junip’s first full-length record makes me feel. Junip’s Fields on Amazon MP3.