This might be the best CD to cross my path this year. The San Francisco foursome pumps out rock and roll in the style of the NY Dolls, early Stones, and the Black Crowes. It's basic, and there's a certain sloppiness – meter changes, out of tune guitars, and missed notes – but there's also a great enthusiasm, a kind of punk rock and roll spirit that drives the cuts here, something you'd find on the early early punk/new wave stuff of the mid to late seventies and early eighties. This is more than your average garage band, and it's difficult to pin down why it's so successful – maybe it's just the sheer simplicity; each guitar gets its own channel, bass drums and vocals down the middle, straight ahead songwriting with above average hooks, a good sense of humor, and a real spark in the studio. It's not the toothless hooker on the cover, that's for sure. www.tkorecords.com

Though the term "Celtic Rock" may sound as contradictory as jumbo shrimp, the former does apply to this band. And if you're imagining a light to middleweight sound with the addition of fiddles, bagpipes, and the like, well, you've hit the nail squarely on the head. But before you go grabbing a pint and dismiss the lads, a good listen is a pleasant experience, if you're into this type of tuneage. The interesting thing about the music, despite the bagpipes and all, is it's not unlike a Dave Matthews CD, in that the tunes are a mix of pop, a wee bit of jazz, funk, and excitable drums. Curiously, the boys all hail from North America, which would explain the pop slant. But you'll also find traditional tunes, like "O'er the Moor and Among the Heather," which will get you wispy and wishing for that pint, after all. www.sevennations.com

25 tunes from 25 bands, predominantly punk in nature, and all charged up just waiting for you. At first glance, some of the song titles are hilarious, with the Dropkick Murphys on "Soundtrack to a Killing Spree," the Righteous doing "Give Peace a Kick in the Face," and Runnin Riot with "Alcoholic Heroes." If punk is your bag, and you're looking for an assortment of new music, Punch Drunk II is a good place to start. There's not really a dud in the bunch, and there's enough variety to hold your attention through all 25 cuts. You'll hear stuff that'll remind you of early punk bands like the Clash, the Dead Boys, heck, even Motorhead. What else can I say but, "OY!" www.mordamrecords.com

With the onset of winter, an injection of reggae might be just the thing you need to break out of a funk. These lads from the left coast have produced a dozen tunes, with more of a ska beat, that churn merrily along. Indeed, the music finds its roots closer to Britain than Jamaica, and even a tune titled "Judge Ito" is an upbeat foray across the reggae soundscape. There's a pervasive, fat B3 organ throughout, muted and plucky guitar runs, the requisite chunka-chunka rhythm guitar, and surprisingly, no vocals. Well, there's a scattered mumbling here and there, but for the most part, it's all music. In that respect, nothing stands out as a killer cut, though "Jesse's Song" is a close rip off of "Sleepwalk." Cool running man. www.tkorecords.com

The songs here are all of your basic three-chord build, light and peppy. The song subjects, however, tend to be on the dark side, with the net result akin to crossing Springsteen's Nebraska with any Kenny Loggins hit. And similar to the minimalist recording of the former, the disc was essentially recorded on an eight track, although the sound is quite big and clear. Moritz's vocals are more like Loggins' though, lending to a lighter feel. So, as on the title track, when he sings, "Have a heart buddy, think about what you've done, I know you have your reasons, but you've killed some mother's son," it's not overtly convincing. If you can get past the vocals, the stories are interesting. Just be sure to keep clear if you're feeling depressed or edgy. home.earthlink.net/~bushleague

If you're searching for a last minute holiday gift for that special rocker of yours, pick up this disc from south of the border. No one knows who is in this band, though there are rumors that members of Fear Factory, Faith No More, Napalm Death, Cradle of Filth, and Dimmu Borgir make up the roster. Who knows for sure? They don't do interviews, don't tour, no pictures, Nada. Oh, yeah, and it's all in Spanish. Which means you can brush up on your foreign language skills, or ignore the vocals and grasp for phonetics (Sa-tan-ismo). This is hard core stuff to be sure, and since I don't understand Spanish, it's even creepier. But if you like it heavy, you will not be disappointed with this machete-rock, where guitars slash and burn, vocals blurt out like satan belching, and drums beat faster than footsteps heading for the Texas border. Vaya con dios, amigo. www.brujeria.com

Here you get the evolution of a band. The first two cuts feature the East Side Boys, the next is by Ibano and Templars, the next by Sons of Acre, and finally five in a row by the Templars. Carl Templar plays guitar on all incarnations, just as Phil Templar plays drums on all. The third Templar, Perry, plays bass, but not on this disc. Confused? Yeah, and punk is supposed to be simple. At least the songs are simple, and energetic. The first two cuts by the East Side Boys are almost impossible to listen to, given the hiss, noise, poor production, etc. By the time you get to the final Templars cuts though, things have shaped up considerably, from playing to production to songwriting. Given that evolutionary perspective, it makes for an interesting listen. www.tkorecords.com

So Halloween's long gone, now what are you going to do? If you like that garage rock/surf/rockabilly sound, you get this disc. Sure, there's a Halloween theme, and you'll hear the theme from the Munsters. But you'll also hear stuff like the Boss Martians doing "Have You Ever Seen?" which is as great a garage groove tune as I have ever heard. Follow that with the Space Cossacks "Transyvanian Orbit," which has that Dick Dale/surf sound, and you get the overall feel of this disc. And hearing the music out of context puts an interesting spin on it as well. Take the Madeira, doing a surf rock version of the theme from "Young Frankenstein," and listen (in my case) in early December, and the Halloween hokiness fades. There's more surf here than scare, and that's a good thing. www.musickrecords.com

If you miss the old days when punk was loud, fast, and once in a while melodic, then you'll be charmed to meet the Oozzies, an Oakland-based quintet that plays punk like, well, if you've been paying attention, like this sentence started to describe. Sounding somewhat similar to the Offspring, but rawer, harder, and faster, the band pumps out thirteen tunes that whiz by from start to finish, and in true punk fashion, none is longer than three minutes. Production is by Dead Kennedy's guitarist East Bay Ray, and the result is a clean cutting sound. The songs are all good, but owing to their brevity, as soon as you start tapping along, seems you're into the next cut. Nice to see bands keeping the punk flame burning. www.industrialstrengthrec.com

Fans of things avant-garde will be happy to know there's a new addition to their ranks. This entry by the Paper Chase possesses the right mix of the weird and the familiar to make you question your sanity. Though not the music for afternoon tea, it is quite appropriate background music for a relationship-ending row with your significant other. A blend of acid jazz, King Crimson-style rock, and general weirdness (note the credit for the first Cut: "head to piano – Elliot Fig"), there's enough here that's consonant to make you keep listening, and enough dissonance to make you lurch for the eject button. And with John Congleton's whining voice across it all, it's enough to make you nuts, and yet like it at the same time. That's the cool thing. www.beatville.com