Hippo Campus: South EP

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The boys of Hippo Campus have grown up. Fresh out of high school with a successful record already behind them, their songwriting has turned up some grit on the singles “The Halocline” and “South.” Don’t worry, though: they’re still as catchy as ever. The band's new EP South comes out on Friday, and they'll play their first-ever headlining Mainroom show (with support from Bad Bad Hats) at First Ave on Nov. 28. The AV Club has pre-streaming audio if you can’t wait.

Frankie Lee: American Dreamer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvJ2gQOzbYk

On Friday, Frankie Lee is coming out with his debut release on independent London label Loose Music. American Dreamer (which includes some songs first heard on the video pentology he released earlier this year) is a 10-track alt-country record where Lee tells stories about love, loss, and culture clashes. Textured with Lee’s gruff personality and strong sense of melody, American Dreamer is ready for your Sunday afternoons lying around, or keeping you company on any other given day. You can stream the album and get Lee's rundown of each song here. Lee doesn’t have any shows planned in town as of right now. He's making his way through the South and right now, and then heads across the pond to Germany.

Gospel Machine: Your Holy Ghost

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The hunger for authentic R&B and soul is high in the Twin Cities, and Gospel Machine are here to give you a taste of some real soul and gospel a la the 1960s. Their songs come with real pain, fun, ups, and downs. It’s the human soul encapsulated in a few minutes of music at a time. Jayanthi Kyle is a smooth powerhouse on vocals; she’s been all over the music scene (Black Audience, the Crybabies), but Gospel Machine might be her strongest band yet. They'll be at the Cedar on Friday for the release of their debut record Your Holy Ghost.

Brian Laidlaw: The Stuntman

Local singer-songwriter Brian Laidlaw writes poetry as well as lyrics, and tonight at the Southern Theater he's releasing his debut full-length poetry collection along with a companion album. Read more about Laidlaw's new project here.

Aaron Bolton is a senior at the University of Minnesota. Currently he is a co-host on Radio K’s Off The Record and is the music reporter at Radio K. He hopes to continue a career in music journalism.