From the creator of the “toothpaste for dinner” site comes the ‘band’ Dog Traders—and while this band exists now (in three-piece form)—the album “A Panic in a Pagoda” was recorded by one man. Plenty of us know that dude who’s always recording stuff in his basement/bedroom/etc, but this guy happens to have a pretty good ear for what he’s doing. Making sure to put the rock in indie-rock “A Panic in a Pagoda” sticks to relatively straightforward song-structures but rarely feels too repetitive.

The album opens with the synth-rocker “Belgium,” an upbeat track full of fuzzy guitars—this structure comes back often though not quite as effectively in “Rebel and the Rock” and “Minister and Man.” “Cold Rolled,” the albums second track is it’s most compelling, layering bursts of raw distorted guitar over distant sounding vocals and a simple acoustic guitar riff. The sound draws heavily on Murmer and Monster era R.E.M. (not surprisingly the artist names R.E.M. as a band he enjoys quite a bit) without sacrificing originality in the mix. The catchy “Evil Seeds” opens a series of strong songs toward the end of the album, followed by the slow-building but rewarding track “Sweetest Secrets,” and the cool little guitar instrumental “A Panic in a Pagoda.”

When Dog Traders is at its best, blending raw garage-rocky guitar with distant vocals and moments of quiet melody (“Cold Rolled” and “They Don’t Need”)—or pulling out catchy synth/guitar lines and choruses (“Belgium” and “Evil Seeds”)—the songs shine. On “A Panic in a Pagoda” those high-points outshine tracks that never quite live up to their potential—and at $7 a copy it’s the perfect album to give the kid down the street recording tracks in his garage—it will help him tremendously.

From the horse’s mouth: Download the Album! Free!

“i’ve sold enough of my new cd to have broken even on the pressing. but i don’t feel like enough people have heard it. it is pretty good music. the songs have good choruses and guitar sounds and are pretty short and catchy. and i think people will really enjoy seeing the band live. i’m putting the whole thing online as a zip file for you to download and check out. the worst that can happen is that people will download it and not buy the cd, right? now, i will tell you this: the CD comes with a full-color booklet, which has the lyrics for all the songs, and the cover art and tray art was done by my crazy pal infernauta. if you get the cd, which is only $7, you will get to see all the art, and all the lyrics.”