A few contenders for best album of the year came out this week, and several great new songs have made the rotation on my playlists. So without further ado, here are my picks for this week.

Carlisle continues to deliver folk music that honors Woody Guthrie’s directive to the purveyors of this kind of art, “to comfort disturbed people and to disturb comfortable people.” From start to finish, Carlisle put his political view — that we should care and take care of one another before and after anything else — on display, supported by a range of songwriting, interpreted covers and spoken word. This album will make everyone who has the time to sit with it a bit disturbed, and I’d guess Carlisle would be pleased by that fact.

In “honour” of Canada Day, here is Corb Lund’s latest Latin-influenced country album. This 12-track record features incredible stories and melodies — not so much a departure but a bit different than we’re used to hearing from Lund. “Mora (Blackberry)” is a wonderful song, and both versions of “Guitar from the Wall” feel just right. As the summer camp season is in full swing here in the Country Cutler household, I’ve been doing more driving than usual, and this album is perfect for a 40-minute drive by yourself.

More of this, please. This is the dance album of the summer — it could keep a dusty dance floor in Texas or a hipster bar in LA two-stepping all night. The slow songs are fast enough to enjoy, the fast songs aren’t too quick to keep you from spinning around, and the writing balances traditional and modern themes without blurring lines or feeling trite. This is a great album. Also, I love a song about Texas music legends beyond Willie smoking weed.

This is a slower, sadder, much more complicated Vandoliers album, for good reason. Overall, I find the completed work to be solid, if a departure from what I expect from their albums. Beyond the major news from Jenni Rose, it’s worth noting the band is getting a bit older, and I need to slow down a bit. I can’t party like I did 10 years ago either.

This is some good timin’, hard drinkin’, sad country music — and you can still dance to it. The Reeves Brothers have been quietly making great 1970s-influenced country music for years, and this is a great song. I look forward to seeing what else the team pushes out as part of this effort.

Thanks for reading, and keep on listening to great country music.