Maybe Smith — Second Best Death

Saskatchewan's Maybe Smith (a.k.a. Colin Skrapek) really knows how to hang on to a lyric. He has a tendency to repeat his own words like they're precious. He breathes them in and draws them out like a mouthful of smoke. Fortunately, his fourth studio album, Second Best Death, is full of really strong lyrics and a lot of solid musicianship. Skrapek's music is a soaring blend of prairie country and whimsical knob-twiddling, his odes punctuated by equal parts lap steel and drum machine. It feels like it shouldn't work as well as it does, but Skrapek, like Dan Snaith or a younger Andrew Whiteman, has the ability and considerable charm to pull off these seemingly disparate genres. This is music for Sunday drives and Sunday hangovers. In other words, it's a good record to have around.