Any group of able musicians can straightforwardly cover a song; the more difficult task is to bring something new to the table. Milwaukee-based outfit Maritime make it sound like just another day in the studio on their cover of Hot Chip's "Boy From School," a Japanese-only bonus track included on the band's latest studio

Metaphors relating a band's sound to their name can come off as lazy and uninspired, but in the case of Glendale, California's Biirdie, it's impossible to resist the temptation to make such a connection. The shifting folk-tinged pop exhibited on the band's forthcoming second LP,