check these out. gems all.
jolie holland - springtime can kill you
tilly and the wall - bottoms of barrels
page france - hello, dear wind

I was just about to suggest Tilly & Wall (thank you Purple's My Space page). Other than that, I don't have anything to offer you (90% of my music is pre-1992).

Damn you, Mayday!! I was going to reccomend Tilly and the Wall. Oh, I see that Bad Cat has given me credit. I feel better now.

My favorite thing about Tilly and the Wall is that their percussionist is a tap dancer, which sounds a bit like castanets on speed.

My other fave this year, although it's been overplayed on TV, is The Weepies' "Say I Am You."

Jerree Small opened for them a couple years back at Beaners, but I didn't fall in love with them until I borrowed this album from Christine Dean.

Mark Knopfler/Emmylou Harris - All the Roadrunning

Excellent album... :D

Check The Surfactants out, I saw them live and they kicked my ass. They will also be playing the 7th Street Entry at First Ave soon.

http://www.thesurfactants.com/

Mates of State-Bring It Back
Destroyers-Destroyers Rubies

Mr Nogatco - Nogatco Rd. is pretty good, but just another kind of unneeded alter ego for Kool Keith (Nogatco Rd. is Dr. Octagon spelled backwards)

not a new artist, but a new album. T-Bone Burnett's True False Identity has about 4 - 5 great songs on it.

Likewise Chavez Ravine by Ry Cooder.

I Love You But I`ve Chosen Darkness(band) Fear Is On Our Side(album) is interesting, it's instrumental. definately preview before buying

I've heard good things about the last Thievery Corporation but haven't heard it.

More later perhaps, gotta get stuff actually done.

not bleeding edge, but fairly recent: Album/Artist:

Set Free / American Analog Set (file under chillax)

Worlds Apart / And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead (not a heavy as it sounds, but these bookish lads can rawk)

I'd second Thievery's Cosmic Game, some good tracks on there- favs being collabs with the Flaming Lips and David Byrne.

couple years old, but lesser known:

Shoot Out At The OK Chinese Restaurant / Ramsey Midwood (earthy laments)

correction: RamsAy Midwood

_Cosmic Game_ is great and if you haven't heard it yet it's a definate recomend, but I was referring to _Versions_ which is new out this year (had to look up the name), but I haven't heard it yet so can't recomend it wholeheartedly yet (even though I've liked almost everything else TC has done)

Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
Ryan Adams - Jacksonville City Nights
The Liars - Drums Not Dead
Ghostface Killa - Fishscale
Built To Spill - You In Reverse
Thom Yorke - The Eraser
Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint - (I forget the name)
CSS - Cansei de ser Sexy
Tapes 'n' Tapes - The Loon

Murder By Death - In Bocca Al Lupo
David Bazan - Fewer Moving Parts
Envy - Insomniac Doze

Polysics Now Is The Time! - on Tofu records in the States - www.polysics.com

band of horses-everything all the time (ndie)
drag the river-it's crazy. (alt/country)
old canes-early morning hymns (indie/folkish)
rocky votolato-makers (folk/country)

Thanks, everybody!

I'll look into all of this.

don't forget:
Bruce Springsteen - Seeger Sessions
The Ditty Bops - (don't remember the title)
Psalm One - Death of a Frequent Flyer (she's a pretty hot rapper outta chicago, good stuff)
if you like Sujan Stevens, his 'new' album is mostly stuff that wouldn't fit onto Comeon feel the Illinoise, So if you liked that album, Avalanche isn't too bad.
if you're a Mason Jennings album, his new one is rather poppy but fun.
and if you're into strange stuff, check out Matmos (the title is long and has a rose in it.) there's a great song called "Rag for William S. Burroughs."