The Felice Brothers

Much like its kindred souls Delta Spirit, the Felice Brothers came from modest busking roots. But whereas the former's sound comes across like a cool, refreshing breeze off the Pacific Ocean, the latter's canon has all the raw, unfiltered emotion found in the bowels of the New York City subway. Its hard-luck stories and stuttering acoustic strums are augmented by tasteful, pedaling accordion, lonely fiddle and just enough percussion to add subtle sway. The prolific band showed its range with this year's Mix Tape by transitioning easily between funked-up country, booze-infused jamboree ("White Limo") and eerie, yearning space-folk ("Marlboro Man"). It's Dylan-esque indie-folk done right.