Kevin Bronson on December 13th, 2011

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Today: The second of four installments in the countdown of our favorite local albums of the year. [On Monday, Nos. 20 through 16.]

15. Hanni El Khatib, “Will the Guns Come Out” (Innovative Leisure)

Unabashedly retro and undeniably testosterone-charged, the San Francisco-bred skater/shredder’s garage-soul is full of salt and sharp edges and, as advertised, “songs for anyone who’s ever been shot or hit by a train.” El Khatib is the latest, and one of the most adept, in a line of artists to extract a full emotional and aural experience from mere guitar-and-drums. This is not your grandpa’s ’50s, unless your grandpa had a two-pack-a-day habit and a rap sheet.

||| Previously: At Buzz Bands LA’s Austin 2011 Showcase. At Also I Like to Rock. “Come Alive” video. Video/documentary. “Loved One video.”

14. The Sea of Cortez, “Make It Sound” (self-released)

If good ol’ indie-rock got the respect it deserved, these guys would be headlining gigs around town, if not blowing people away on tour. After teasing in 2010 with the sprawling, cinematic track “The Shores,” the Sea of Cortez polished an album that hopscotches from atmospheric anthems to art-pop to post-rock in a way few bands can, at least on one disc (although Yo La Tengo comes to mind). Vanishing youth, recurring alienation and the inner battles with both: All are confronted here a way that might make you lose your head, and find it too.

||| Previously: “The Shores.” Review, with downloads.

13. Dawes, “Nothing Is Wrong” (ATO)

The Malibu-bred foursome’s pristine trip to the Laurel Canyon of the 1970s waxes dramatically about the various muses in songwriter Taylor Goldsmith’s life, the prominent one being the city of Los Angeles itself. His crisp guitar work, yearning vocals and introspective yarns are the stuff of veteran musicians, not a twentysomething on his sophomore album. Indeed, the cred Dawes earned from Jackson Browne and Robbie Robertson (each of whom tabbed the quartet as his back band) was well-deserved, and “Nothing is Wrong” is simply testimony to Dawes’ folk-rock craft.

||| Previously: “If I Wanted Someone.” Interview. “Time Spent in Los Angeles” video. Live review.

12. Fool’s Gold, “Leave No Trace” (IAMSOUND)

Pared down from a sprawling collective to a tight quintet, Fool’s Gold marries its Afro/Caribbean sound to ’80s radio influences on its sophomore album, and tropi-pop’s loss is our gain. “Leave No Trace” works thanks to singer Luke Top’s almost Moz-like entreaties, and the pointillist guitar work of Lewis Pesacov, whose licks burst atop the complex rhythms like bubbles on a fizzy drink. At times it’s as if they’ve crashed a Cure concert wearing brightly colored print shirts and orange sunglasses rather than black and eyeliner. The colors suit them.

||| Previously: “Street Clothes” video. Live FYF Fest review. “Wild Window” video. “Wild Window” remix.

11. The Belle Brigade, “The Belle Brigade” (Reprise)

The debut from the band anchored by sister-brother duo Barbara and Ethan Gruska is all about songcraft, much of it the way it was practiced by legendary California pop and folk-rock bands in the 1970s. It’s about as unpretentious as it gets, from the siblings’ meticulous harmonies to the timeless melodies to the equally timeless themes of love, loss and redemption. A perfect companion to the Dawes album, “The Belle Brigade” can rock out as well as reign in, and whether it elicits wistful smiles or twisted guitar faces, it’s worth the journey.

||| Previously: An early review. SXSW review. “Sweet Louise.” “Losers” video. Live review.