Knife in the Water's unique mix of bleak Texas psyche and country creates the perfect soundtrack for downing a fifth of bourbon alone in your car, parked outside your ex's house in the dead of winter. You may or may not also be loading a gun. With a subtle blend of organ, guitar, pedal steel, bass and drums, they conjure the barren stretches of Texas plains, the faces in dusty bars and the smell of cheap perfume and sleazy motel rooms.

The band, comprised of Aaron Blount (vocals, guitar), Laura Krause (vocals, Hammond organ), Bill McCullough (pedal steel), Mark Nathan (bass) and Cisco Ryder (drums), formed in 1997. Being native Texans, their sound is steeped in residual influence. It is the organic result of the five band members cross-fertilising backgrounds in church, gospel and classical, rockabilly and country-blues, Willie Nelson and Joy Division. They have an academic background in avant-garde minimalism and blood-bucket honky tonk, and they're capable and serious in executing their boundary-blurring vision of unusual modern American sounds.

Singer-songwriter Aaron Blount came by the traditions which anchor them honestly. "Growing up in Texas, you can't avoid country, folk, traditional music... it's really everywhere. I remember checking out the Harry Smith Folk Anthology from the library — I didn't want to take it back. Those songs generated a feeling that a lot of modern music didn't, an understanding of the cycle of life and death. Not living by a clock, but by the rising of the sun."

Crosspross Bells finds the band moving into more psych-abstract territory than their previous long players, Plays One Sound and Others and Red River. A resigned spiritual feel is evident on "Crosshair Chapel," and "From the Catbird Seat" bears the lysergic influence of the Thirteen Floor Elevators. The five songs on this EP share the themes of indifference and decay, and find a strange natural calm in both states.

Knife in the Water has toured Europe twice, made many treks across the US and Texas (technically its own nation), including stints with Calexico, Macha and NYC's Mendoza Line. The Red River LP was #14 on SPIN's top 20 albums of 2000. The band's third album, Cut the Cord was released in 2003, and the band is currently working on a fourth.

When Ted Leo won the 2010 Shorty Award for Best Twitter Feed in the Music category, he defeated some strong competition, including Justin Bieber and Britney Spears. What vaulted New Jersey native Theodore Francis Leo over such juggernauts? Many voters cited Leo's natural humor and conversational tone, which veered from quips encouraging vegans to opt for Tofucharist at their next communion, to commentary on watching Battlestar Galactica, to lashes at his intern.

While many musicians would crap out self-promoting blurbs and bland observations, Ted Leo was articulate and goddamn funny. What does his road commentary have to do with his live show, you ask? Why should you be sure to see him at Bottom of the Hill? Because the guy's a goddamn national treasure, that's why.

It's rare these days to find an American songwriter tackle political issues with such ferocity and specificity. The UK has Billy Bragg and Frank Turner, but who do we have? We have Ted Leo. This show is a solo acoustic set. The raucous shows with the full Pharmacists band are cathartic, sure, but the acoustic setting is where those barbed lyrics really emerge.

Leo's trio of acclaimed albums for the sadly defunct Berkeley label, Lookout!, will surely be represented: The Tyranny of Distance, Hearts of Oak and Shake the Sheets. We'll likely hear a few brisk numbers from his most recent disc, The Brutalist Bricks. And yes, there's a chance we'll hear a song or two from his as-of-yet unfinished musical about the history of US involvement in Guatemala, Red Bananas.

For a taste of his sharply observed words, look no further than the first lines of the new album's opening, "The Mighty Sparrow": "When the café doors exploded, I reacted too / I reacted to you / Papers in the wind a-waltzing, I was dancing too / My mind danced to you." It's a powerful start to a strong record, and another victory for the tenacious punk journeyman. And when Ted Leo wins, we all win.

KEVIN SEAL