Denver rock band Meese has been relentlessly touring for the past few years, most recently since the release of their new album, Broadcast, in July.

You know Juliette Lewis as a movie actress and a musician, who released her first album, …Like a Bolt of Lightening, in 2004 with then-band the Licks.

New York electropop duo Fischerspooner know a thing or two about New York City's underground scene. They emerged as video, performance, and musical artists in the late-'90s at a variety of off-the-grid parties and events, before breaking out as a full-fledged band with their 2001 album, #1. (Their third record, Entertainment, dropped in May.)

Philadelphia rockers mewithoutyou are beloved for their introspective, thoughtful lyrics and the spiritual elements they imbue into their music. So it should come as no surprise that a book written by an actual guru deeply impacted their fourth album, It's All Crazy! It's All False! It's All A Dream! It's Alright, released last month.

Clues frontman Alden Penner reads a lot of books. And though he doesn't necessarily finish them all, the ex-Unicorns man says a wide variety of writing influenced the songs on Clues' self-titled debut. "[A] book I read recently was a history of the Mennonites in the Ukraine, because part of my background is Mennonite," Penner tells SPIN.com.