Damien Jurado is on of my favorite songwriters. His ability to capture moments in songs is simply incredible, not many people can do what he does, and do it so well. His upcoming album caught me completely by surprise, as I didn’t even realize there was a new one in the works. I was checking out the Secretly Canadian website and sure enough, And Now That I’m In Your Shadow will be released on October 10th.

On his new album And Now That I’m In Your Shadow, Jurado once again is calling us out to meet him. With the help of now permanent members Eric Fisher and Jenna Conrad, Damien has taken on a new side to his career. No longer is Damien Jurado just another solo artist but a band. Rarely from now on will any live performance just include a man with his ideas and guitar but a continuous collaboration in lyrics and sound creating a backdrop to a world that is filled with desperation and blessings, life discovered and life that is lost.

Together they will lead you into the lyrical world of the forgotten faces that you once knew. The songs are old friends and close relatives, quarreling loves and love lost, the very thoughts that cross your mind when you are alone or among the crowd. Forever in your shadow and trapped between the lines that you write down, Damien Jurado is still here and going nowhere.

I’ve yet to hear the whole album, but Secretly Canadian has an MP3 of the first single, “What Were The Chances,” that I think is absolutely beautiful. Check it out, and let me know what you think. If that song isn’t enough to keep you satisfied, Damien has set up a blog that features demos in the form of audio posts.

Check out Bob’s video for “When The Deal Goes Down” right here, and let me know what you think.

Rachael from the Underrated Magazine was kind enough to include me on a piece she did called Meet The Bloggers for Breakthru Radio.

Make sure to check it out.

There are a ton of great albums that come out today, plenty of good choices that will make you very happy for the rest of the year, and perhaps even longer. One release that may not appear on your radar, but very well should be is Song of the Blackbird by William Elliott Whitmore. Once again I have to take my hat off to Kyle at More Cowbell for this post which turned me on to William’s music for the very first time almost a month ago.

If you head over to his myspace site you’ll get a great glimpse of an artist who writes beautiful and tragedy laden music which I can’t help but compare to the man in black himself. There’s not enough whiskey in the world that could soothe the pain and raw emotion you’ll find within William Elliott Whitmore’s music. William will be hitting the road with MoB favorites, Lucero next month, so make sure you get there early to catch this guy. Here’s what Lucero’s drummer, Roy had to say about seeing William perform:

I’ve seen him silence an entire room full (300 or so) of gossip prone drinkers/hipsters/rock-n-rollers/show-goers/tattooees and etc. types of folks in Chicago and put a good many of them on the verge of tears, with exuberant applause after every song. It was beautiful. Just one guy, one instrument and his songs captivating a large audience. Gave me the chills.

Horse Feathers are a band that could fit nicely on a tour alongside Iron & Wine or Calexico. I really enjoy their recent release, Words Are Dead, in fact, I’ve liked it so much I’ve played it twice this morning. The masterwork of one Justin Ringle, whose open mic moniker Horse Feathers lead him to be discovered by Peter Broderick who shared a similar interest in music leading to the formation you’ll find and hopefully enjoy.

I can fully put our stamp of approval on this album, and urge you to seek it out. If you don’t want to take my word for it, there are a slew of other great music blogs willing to back up my admiration.

The album will be released on September 26th on Lucky Madison.