Mixtapes live in a weird intersection between well-produced pop-punk and lo-fi indie pop. On the one hand they have a fatter drum sound than I expect from low-budget indies; on the other, the co-ed vocals sometimes have just enough unsteadiness to be endearing (not grating). They write insanely hooky tunes about stuff like sexual frustration, classic Metallica, coping with life, feeling sour grapes-y about an ex, and guilt over not wanting to go to a party. They tackle these subjects with keen observation and sharp humor. If they have a flaw it might be a little too much self-awareness; I could give them a song-about-writing-songs penalty flag, but it’s waived on account of general awesomeness. So far they favor frequent, short releases, which I am totally down with. The recent “Hope is For People,” is as a fine starting place; the title track is for sure on my year’s best shortlist. mixtapesohio will help get you hooked up with almost the whole enchilada. You’ll need to hit up Death to False Hope records to score the “Castle Songs” single (while you’re at DtFH, check out the Candy Hearts release, too). Most of Mixtapes’ releases are Creative Commons licensed, so you can download ‘em legit for free, then kick a donation to the band if you love their music like I do, and want more, more, more.

I’m tempted not even to mention that is sort of an indie/alt/electronic supergroup, founded by Cibo Matto’s Yuka Honda and That Dog’s Petra Haden, bolstered by Cornelius’ Hirotaka Shimizu and Yuko Araki, because If By Yes sounds nothing like the members’ best-known projects. It’s a far cry from the melodic alternarock of That Dog, the aural aggression of Cornelius, and the kitchen sink aesthetic of Cibo Matto. Those aren’t criticisms, just observations — I think Salt on Sea Glass deserves to be judged on its own terms, not saddled with expectations based on what its members used to do.

And I like much of it quite a bit, especially “You’re Something Else.”