This week, we’ll do some pop, some rockish stuff, a couple things from the UK and Sweden, an article about songwriting, and some line-dancing.

That’s right, line-dancing, damn it. It’ll make sense in a few minutes.

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Jr. Jr. – Gone
An unabashed pop song every now and again never hurt anyone. From the artists formerly known as Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.

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The Royal Concept – Smile
Ok, two unabashed pop songs, still not medically harmful. This one’s from Sweden.

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Protection Patrol Pinkerton – Don’t Wreck This
Three in a row, dangerous territory now, this time from Ghent, Belgium. Ignore the silly hipster-ish video; enjoy the catchy goodness.  Their debut record, Good Music Beautiful People, is due out November 20th on Waste My Records.

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Julien Baker – Brittle Boned
Enough pop, it’s time for some pensive sadness. Ms. Baker’s debut record, Sprained Ankle, is due out October 23rd. She’s been featured around these parts before. Here’s another standout track from the album: a threadbare guitar melody with hushed, double-tracked vocals and somber lyrics. This is not party-with-your-friends-music; this is sit-in-your-favorite-room-preferably-alone-and-ponder-the-cosmos-music. But it’s very good.

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City & Colour – Lover Come Back
And now, here’s a heavily-tattooed man singing a beautiful love song about his missus. Dallas Green’s newest album, If I Should Go Before You, is due out October 9th.

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Lord Huron – The Birds are Singing at Night
How about another great song from one of Michigan’s best musical exports.

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Alberta Cross – Ghost of Sante Fe
A good, solid rock song every once in a while is beneficial to your health — from their forthcoming self-titled record, due October 16th.

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Josh Ritter – Getting Ready to Get Down
Great song, great video, and a great backstory to said video that you can read about here. It mostly involves line-dancing and small dogs.

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A disconcerting number of your favorite pop songs on the radio are written by a group of bald Norwegian men. The article is care of The Atlantic, and suggested by a funny, intelligent e-friend named “Egg” over at Faithless Street.

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You can now stream the new (and quite good) Saintseneca record, Such Things, ahead of its release, on NPR.

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Until next week…