If you ask me, there's not much that beats fall in Minnesota. There's no humidity, it's good sleeping weather, and it's a time when bands in the Twin Cities start cranking out new music at a breakneck pace, as if they're trying to cram as many new albums as possible into the end of the calendar year. Some days it's all I can do to just keep up—a problem I'm happy to have.

In this week's Friday Five, I rounded up some new jams from a wide variety of different groups—including the 757s, who I'm very happy to report just announced that they'll be back on the scene with a new album this winter.

The 757s

It's hard to believe it's already been four years since we've gotten anything new out of the 757s, who went on hiatus when drummer Steve Sutherland left town. Sutherland is back now and the band has reformed, frontman Paul Pirner says. They're hard at work on a new record, which is being tracked at Albatross Studio with producer Mike Wisti and mixed by Tom Herbers, and you can sample lead single "Trick of the Light" in the video below. They have a gig next Thursday at the Turf Club, and the new 757s record will drop later this winter.

Moonstone Continuum

The '80s chic aesthetic never looked so cool. It's everything I ever hoped for from a Moonstone video, and more.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sozf7Svq4LY

Har Mar Superstar

You didn't think we could get away with a Friday Five on Har Mar Superstar Day without posting a little Har Mar love, did ya? Check out the latest joint from Har Mar, "Prisoner," complete with a cameo from Juliette Lewis.

Strange Names

This low-budget romp finds Strange Names partners Francis Jimenez and Liam Benzvi driving cardboard box buses, dueling with swords in the woods, and rolling around on an area rug. Like ya do.

ACTN

We'll end the week with something brand new. ACTN is a project from Hot Ashes' Gus Watkins. He calls this new band "death-pop," and I can see it appealing to fans of some of the other great experimental electro bands we have here in the Cities (especially Wiping Out Thousands and Tickle Torture). Check it out—and if you like what you hear, there's more available on his Bandcamp page.