‘People Skills’ by People Skills: Those familiar with the heavy, exploratory rock of Comma may be surprised to hear a couple of its members lending their instrumental talents to a peppier, poppier, jammier new group. Brentwood’s People Skills play a style they describe on Facebook as “pop on steroids” and “psychedelic lullaby rock.”

The band includes Comma members Greg Baldi on bass and Andrew Paolini on drums, with Chelsea Paolini on guitar and vocals. Their self-titled debut album features nine original songs with danceable beats, highlighted by inventive constructions that keep listeners wondering what might happen next. 

The tunes are generally upbeat, with some engaging instrumental progressions. The third track, “P is for Pushing It,” features three and a half minutes of frolicking guitar, bass and drums before the vocals even enter the picture. The song exceeds 10 minutes in length, demonstrating the band’s ambition.

“You’re not quite pushing it / Just barely pushing it / But I’m not allowed to push back / I have to fake the abstract,” Paolini sings.

Chelsea Paolini is the primary songwriter here, and she brings an endearing exuberance to her melodies and vocals. But the most interesting components are embedded in the instrumental backdrop, with Baldi and Andrew Paolini keeping exceptionally active on bass and drums. Chelsea can play guitar, too, and she indulges her psychedelic side on certain solos, notably on “Write Me.”

Recorded and mixed by Jon Nolan at Milltown Recording in March, “People Skills” is a fun and promising debut from a trio with serious music skills.

‘Every Night Is Prom Night’ by Tim McCoy and the Papercuts: The latest from long-time local rocker Tim McCoy and his Papercuts promptly identifies itself as an unrelenting power-pop punch to the head. The opening track, “Dance Hall,” roars into the ear’s canals like a Camaro revving onto the dragway, and the band rarely eases off the gas pedal from there.

Since implanting himself in the Seacoast music scene more than 20 years ago with his popular band Heavens to Murgatroid, McCoy has not strayed from the punk-influenced brand of fast-paced rock that has made him a local favorite. On “Every Night is Prom Night,” he plucks at the strings of his bass as deftly and rapidly as ever, while also offering charged vocals, and an occasional softer touch on acoustic guitar.

McCoy and the Papercuts brought a potent new ingredient to their rock recipe a couple of years ago with the addition of skilled second vocalist Jamie Biscomb. She also plays piano, organ and percussion on this disc, while Jason Boyce adds nimble electric guitars and Dan McGary brings steady thunder on drums.

The album features a variety of rock flavors, from the slightly lighter fare of “No Second Best” to the dark and heavy “Late Great All Night” to the vintage rockabilly of “Harold’s in the Doghouse Again to the bouncy sound of “Tension.”

Recorded and mixed by Jon Nolan at Milltown Recording in Rollinsford, the CD features 10 original songs filled with the best kind of rock aggression.

‘Who I Am’ by Andrea Szirbik: Singer-songwriter Andrea Szirbik impressed Seacoast audiences with her 2011 debut album, “I Am Here,” and with its recent follow-up, she has definitively established herself as a long-term talent in the local music pool.

“Who I Am” opens with a series of strikingly stirring songs, beginning with the Latin-inspired “Llanto Gitano” From there, it travels over several musical terrains, with acoustic folk numbers like “Rebeginning” alternating with tinkling, ethereal lullabies like “Sonrisa.” It’s a mature and memorable sophomore effort.

Szirbik’s singing is stronger and more graceful than ever on the new disc. Implementing her fluent Spanish on a couple of tracks, she delivers a mesmerizing vocal performance. A number of names pop to mind at various points, including Neko Case, Carolyn King and Lisa Loeb, and yet Szirbik has a voice all her own.

The CD’s instrumentation is festooned with resonant guitars, mandolins, vibraphone and fiddles. Several familiar names appear in the supporting cast, featuring Greg Rothwell, Matt Young, Mike Thornhill, Sam Harding, Chris Guzikowski, Kristin Noble, Dan Murphy, Joseph K Murphy and B.A. Canning (who’s vocal duet with Szirbik on “Seattle” is especially arresting). There’s even some “child vocals” from Szirbik’s daughter Amari Thornton, to whom the disc is dedicated.

“Never been able to finish a song about you / Even though you’re the one who keeps me from feeling cold and blue,” Szirbik sings in “Everywhere She Steps (Amari’s Song).”

Szirbik will play a CD release show aboard the M/V Thomas Laighton on Friday, Sept. 21.

‘Return to Kemper’ by David Surette: With his latest release, local guitarist David Surette reminds us that the Seacoast is home to one of New England’s most virtuosic guitarists. “Return to Kemper” features two decades worth of evocative solo acoustic guitar portraits.

The album is a collection of pieces Surette first recorded in the 1990s, along with five new live tracks recorded at the Concord Community Music School in 2011. His initial plan was simply to reissue his 1996 CD “Trip to Kemper,” but he bolstered the recording with some older and newer material.

The updated version is loaded with 20 tracks, a gluttonous feast of original and traditional guitar work that lasts well over an hour. The stylistic influences range from American to Celtic roots, blues to bluegrass, often mixing them all together.

The pace is generally on the sleepy side, but with a wistful eloquence that evokes visions of reeds bending in a twilit field. Surette, also a proficient mandolin and bouzouki player, uses his instrument the way a master painter uses his brush, bringing swaths of color and emotion to each tune.

Surette plays with incredible precision and dexterity, bringing to mind fingerstyle guitar greats like Leo Kottke and John Fahey. It’s a lot to digest in a single sitting, but Surette keeps things stimulating with different shades of acoustic sound at every turn, ending with the distinctly bluesy treat “Mississippi Blues.” This CD is meant for quiet and intent listening from those who appreciate truly fine playing.