Editor’s Note: We would like to extend a hearty welcome to Hunter Hauk who joins our FrontRow team. Hunter joins us from the late Quick, where he was a well-loved pop music columnist. He’ll be wearing a similar hat here on FrontRow, covering all things music – primarily local but with a dash of national to help keep things in context. We’re thrilled to have him on board.

That long and winding summer outside doesn’t seem to be letting up quickly, which recently prompted my new editor here at FrontRow to proclaim something to the effect of, “Well, I guess it’s time for a fall preview.” And I picked up what he was putting down: Early September’s a good time to take a fresh look at the music coming soon from the depths of North Texas musicians’ creative spaces.

So, rather than walk outside and ask street randoms which local albums they most anticipate, I pulled out the handy digital Rolodex and started a-communicating.

Ain’t gonna lie; the contact list is a souvenir from six or seven years of writing about local music at the recently executed Quick. My last few years at that paper were devoted more to multi-tasking than obsessing, though, so I had and have some catching up to do as I join FrontRow’s excellent music team. Consider me new-old, or whatever. But enough about me.

Probably the best part about me is that I tend to get out of the way of the subjects. Easy to do in a region with so many people giving this music thing a go that it could set even the most bulbous head spinning. For your and my own good, I’ll break this preview into parts. We’ll start by checking in with a few of the area’s prominent record labels.

Kirtland Records

Founded by former Deep Blue Something drummer John Kirtland, this Dallas label enjoys a solid rep with local rock fans, in part because of its attachment to the Toadies. And while that partnership is stronger than ever – with the veteran rock band earning solid reviews and drawing big festival crowds in its career’s second act – Kirtland has continued to make smart moves in expanding its roster.

Last year saw the label embrace the pop-leaning masses by releasing the starkly-personal (but slickly produced) Smile Smile record Truth on Tape, and putting out beloved Denton singer Sarah Jaffe’s proper debut album, Suburban Nature. We’ve got more on what’s next for Smile Smile coming Wednesday, but let’s go ‘head and engage in some Jaffe talk. Before Suburban Nature, she was already the focus of countless “next big thing” prognostications. Her undeniable gifts as a vocalist hushed many a local crowd when she was in her early 20s, playing quiet, confessional folk.

But the Kirtland release gave Jaffe a chance to explore outside of the singer-songwriter realm a bit. The songs, at heart, remained true to her sensitive, wise-beyond-years perspective, but the arrangements were all over the place. We saw for the first time an artistic gambler in Jaffe; her risks were her own creative rewards. So it’s no surprise that she’ll widen her palette even more on the new EP The Way Sound Leaves a Room, coming Sept. 27.

The new collection – billed as something to tide fans over until a sophomore album is ready – will be paired with a DVD documenting Jaffe’s thoughtfully delivered, sold-out Wyly Theatre concert from February. Aside from a few covers that Kirtland’s Tami Thomsen tells us will surprise people (think hip-hop; think indie rock), The Way Sound Leaves a Room will contain demo versions of new songs Jaffe’s fans have now heard plenty, including “A Sucker for Your Marketing,” “All That Time,” and the title track. There’ll also be an acoustic version of Suburban Nature’s breakout song, “Clementine.” See a Kirtland-produced teaser here, and stay tuned for much more on Jaffe in coming weeks.

Idol Records

Some of the area’s finest indie-rock and Americana acts have found a comfortable home at Idol Records since its 1993 inception. Owner Erv Karwelis’ friendly, laid-back approach to marketing and releasing stuff is perhaps a better fit for these folks than, say, an aggressive, radio-obsessed major. Idol’s roster in more recent times has included the blockbuster Dallas pop-grass duo the O’s, subgenre-mashing rock trio Here Holy Spain, and swoon-inducing Fort Worth folk-pop band Calhoun.

Gaston Light (Photo courtesy of Idol Records)

But we’re looking to the future, right? I keep forgetting that. I caught up with Karwelis by e-mail last week to see what Idol’s got in store, and he seems most excited at the moment about the Sept. 20 release of Peel, the debut album by the melodic alt-country band Gaston Light. Listening to Peel, you might not realize that the endearingly froggy-voiced frontman, Jason Corcoran, is only 22. He’s got the hard-lived, gruff delivery of Jay Farrar, combined with the occasionally off-the-rails screaminess of Conor Oberst.

Other than Gaston Light, Erv’s looking at a few other things for fall, including the development of a supergroup of sorts that prominently features Black Tie Dynasty’s Cory Watson and Brian McCorquodale, with studio assists from Midlake’s McKenzie Smith and Mark Pirro of Tripping Daisy/Polyphonic Spree. Working band name is Mon Julien, and Erv pointed me to an expectedly moody teaser video here.

Gutterth Productions

Lo-fi recording, persistent gigging and grassroots marketing make up the standard M.O. for this impassioned Denton promotion company and label. And the folks there push the projects of some of Little D’s more interesting acts. There are at least two high-profile Gutterth projects planned for the fourth quarter of 2011, co-founder Michael Briggs tells me. Singer-songwriter Emil Rapstine’s longtime band the Angelus will release the new record On a Dark and Barren Land Oct. 8. Rapstine’s spine-tingling, sinister vocals prove compelling even in acoustic performances; pair them with the appropriate studio epic-ness, and you’ve got something truly unique. Be excited.

New Science Projects' Dale Jones

Speaking of sinister, the grimy-n-morbid Denton bluesman Dale Jones will lead his band, New Science Projects, into some unfamiliar territory come November. Briggs and Jones tell me that Gutterth will put out a musical Christmas card containing new holiday tunes by NSP. Holiday tunes? By NSP? Let me just be the first to say, “Whoa.”

Sadly, Jones didn’t spill anything of note regarding the lyrical content or the almost unthinkable possibility of cheery, heartwarming themes when we Facebook-attacked him last week. You’ll just have to attend Gutterth’s holiday mixer on Nov. 5 at J&J’s Pizza, where the tunes will be unveiled. “NSP will be playing as a full band and playing all of the Xmas songs from the EP,” Jones writes. “Not sure what else we will play. Maybe covers, but I dunno yet.”

G4 Muzik

Juan and Oscar Salinas, a.k.a. Play-N-Skillz, are Dallas brothers on a mission. With extensive hip-hop production credits and a label imprint to call their own, they’re doing everything they can do to get to — at the very least — mini-mogul status. They earned Grammys for work on Chamillionaire’s 2006 hit “Ridin’” and Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter III, and in 2009 signed a deal creating the G4 Muzik imprint for Universal Music. First thing they did with it? They signed rapid-fire local rapper Enertia. He’s since put out two successful mixes online and is planning a third for the fall or winter.

Play-N-Skillz has its own music to push as well, a high-on-life, braggadocios style of hip-hop that’s starting to incorporate more radio-friendly electro-pop. Juan Salinas, the “Play” of the equation and the duo’s natural spokesman, explained where the brothers are trying to go, and spilled a few tasty beans, during a phone chat last week. Rather than keep prosin’ you to death, I’ll let an excerpt from the convo breathe freely:

FrontRow: So, tell me what’s coming from the G4 world in the next few months.

Juan “Play” Salinas: We’re about to announce a new mixtape coming out last week in October, called Red October. It’ll be kind of a sneak peek at what the next album will sound like – a fusion of electro and hip-hop with a little Southern drawl to it. We’re dropping a new single with Pitbull … right around then too, so that should be pretty cool. And Enertia’s working on a mixtape as well, leading up to his first album.

FR: You guys are big believers in the mix-tape method …

Play: We’ve got to stay active, especially with the new artists. We have to keep people aware. Aside from that, we’ve got a lot of great things in the works on the producer side. We’re about to do a big production deal with Interscope and Jimmy Iovine.

FR: What?! Jimmy Iovine?

Play: You’re the first person I’m telling that to. Last week in LA, I actually got to sit down with him for a minute. He’s excited about us, and he thinks we have the opportunity to write some big hits.

FR: You might be working with Gaga before you know it.

Play: CherryTree Records, which she first signed to? That’s who we’re doing the deal with. And it’s amazing, because a week before I sat down with Jimmy, I was talking to a friend who asked me what five people in the world I’d have dinner with. He was one of them.

FR: It’s obviously been a smart move to embrace electronic styles in the last year. Look at Pitbull and everyone else ruling the radio. Has it been a rewarding venture for you guys?

Play: After collaborating with David Guetta [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4kVWCSzfK4], and working with Pitbull on and off for years, we’ve always been able to write and produce records like that. So it didn’t feel too crazy, like hip-hop artists doing techno music. It was a natural transition, since we’ve been DJs for years. And we’ve gotten an awesome response from fans. But I’m trying to find a good balance. That’s what we hope to do with the next mixtape and the album. That’s the challenge of the moment.

I pray you’ve still got some hard-drive space left after this download of fall-release info, because I’ve merely scratched the surface. North Texas’ music scene may not be defined by one particular sound, but it’s large and plentiful. That’s why I’ll be back tomorrow, with insight into this week’s biggest local-ish releases, St. Vincent’s Strange Mercy (stream here) and Neon Indian’s Era Extraña (here).

On Wednesday, I’ll return bearing the goods on upcoming records from Air Review, Picnictyme, Ryan Thomas Becker, Tum Tum, Dorrough, Salim Nourallah, King Bucks, Smile Smile, Sir Silky and more.

I realize there are countless more stories to collect, decode and share. So, if you feel I’m missing out on what’s important to you after these previews, hit me up at hunterhauk@gmail.com and yell at me. If you recommend it to me, I’ll get to it. (Unless it contains whistling solos, because I’m pretty sure that ol’ Chris Mosley has outlawed those at FrontRow headquarters.)

Until tomorrow …