Owen

The dissolution of indie band American Football left fans howling in their hoodies. Luckily, frontman Mike Kinsella (of Joan of Arc, Cap'n Jazz and Owls fame) heard their cries and launched a new project with the curious moniker Owen. His new one-man band then released the most melancholy batch of tunes this side of Elliott Smith's oeuvre. Kinsella's woeful guitar and pleading tenor bring to mind Matt Pond and Red House Painters' Mark Kozelek; lyrically, he's mastered the art of agonizing heartbreak. While at-home listening may be reserved for the recently dumped, Kinsella's live show encourages the guiltiest of pleasures: socially acceptable ogling of a pretty boy scorned.