On This Addiction, Alkaline Trio strip their dark and stormy rock down to its punk roots—blood, spit, tattoos, and all.

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Past Lives may feature three members of the defunct act the Blood Brothers, but if you’re expecting fractured post-screamo you’re in for a surprise. On the band’s debut full-length, Tapestry of Webs, the four-piece transpose their sound into a more pop context without forsaking their avant-garde edge. The result is an album that’s teeming with ambitious, guitar-driven songs—such as “Past Lives”—that are as eerie as they are enchanting. While Tapestry lacks the aggression of Past Lives’ previous act, songs like the droning “K Hole” sound like a logical progression for these musical misfits. If the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are a little too safe for you, Past Lives could be your new favorite act.

Ted Leo may be the hardest-working man in punk. Although his sixth full-length with the Pharmacists may not have any songs as infectious as “Me and Mia,” from his incendiary 2004 effort Shake the Sheets, it is probably his most consistent effort to date. While the album is teeming with plenty of politically motivated rock songs, The Brutalist Bricks also has sonic surprises, such as the half-time acoustic breakdown on “Bottled in Cork” and the dissonant introduction to the Elvis Costello–worthy anthem “Gimme the Wire.” “We all got a job to do, we’re gonna do it together,” Leo sings over a bed of pounding piano and tribal drums on “Woke Up Near Chelsea.” Leo’s doing his part—what about you?

Scotland is known for a lot of things, like its whiskey and … some other stuff we can’t recall. We do know that the country’s second most satisfying export is the indie rock act Frightened Rabbit, whose third album, The Winter of Mixed Drinks, proves they can transcend their own hype. From expertly crafted ballad “Swim Until You Can’t See Land” to the spacey “Foot Shooter,” the band incorporates more expansive arrangements into their already seasoned songwriting, and the ambient instrumentation on songs like “Skip the Youth” take the band’s sound to the next level. Although we’re guessing that, like a good whiskey, The Winter of Mixed Drinks is going to age well, we suggest filling up now.

We’ll be the first to admit that the Drive-By Truckers’ last proper full-length (and first since the departure of songwriter Jason Isbell), Brighter Than Creation’s Dark, left a lot to be desired. However, The Big To-Do is proof that the band have their Southern-fried mojo back. Spanning everything from the hard rocking opener “Daddy Learned to Fly” to the slide-guitar-driven “Santa Fe,” the album showcases the diversity of Patterson Hood & Co., while the melodic showstopper “Birthday Boy” confirms that Mike Cooley is the band’s secret weapon. The Big To-Do only falters on the sappy Shonna Tucker–sung ballad “You Got Another,” which is a sonic non sequitur on an otherwise excellent effort.

Vampire rockers 69 Eyes want to infect the U.S. with their goth ‘n’ roll.

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Those who accuse Story of the Year of identity confusion have the story only half right. While the St. Louis band is a Warped Tour regular and releases albums on punk label Epitaph, the truth is that SOTY has more in common with radio rock bands such as Hoobastank and Chevelle. That doesn’t change on their fourth album as producer Elvis Baskette (who also worked with Chevelle) helps SOTY crank out at least a half dozen songs that fit perfectly on any modern rock dial. Try “Ten Years Down,” with its perfect riff and huge chorus, or “Holding on to You,” a midtempo ballad that builds from a piano riff until singer Dan Marsala wails, “I found a way to make it through/Holding on to you.” It’s rock radio fodder of the highest caliber.

On paper, there’s nothing likable about Vampire Weekend, a band made up of Columbia University students who describe their sound as “Upper West Side Soweto,” a reference to their blend of preppy indie rock and Afrobeat. But somewhere in their xylophone and harpsichord racket and seeming worship of Paul Simon’s Graceland, there is an odd earnestness that works. Rhythms are what drive this band, and they vary from Brazilian funk to wild dancehall. “Holiday” races around offbeat ska that breaks into keyboard flurry, while opener “Horchata,” an ode to the Mexican beverage, is built around tribal drumming and African chanting. All the while, singer Ezra Koenig weaves his boyish voice through the rhythm. Make it your next guilty pleasure.