Various Artists

Kill Rock Stars is owned by Slim Moon, a man who has better taste in music than you do. His ears are irrefutably sharp: The KRS roster is a dense handbook on indie-underground innovators and breakthrough wonders ranging from Sleater-Kinney and Elliott Smith to the Gossip and Xiu Xiu. So when the guy handpicks a selection of artists for a compilation — both alums of the label and non-Killers — it would be a damned shame not to expose yourself to it. The Sound the Hare Heard reflects the growing trend for folk-inspired singer/songwriters with hearts as big as the state of Washington. Every track is perfect for smooth transitions on rainy-day mixtapes, with a list that includes stellar songs from Devin Davis, Southerly, Jeff Hanson, Death Vessel, Sufjan Stevens, Lovers, and Wooden Wand, among others.