Since starting in a living room in the mid-'90s Regina Hexaphone has blossomed. Their warm, amiable pop comes built on a baseline of jangly riffs, likable keys, close harmonies and the occasional stomping beat. Songs range from hazy folk odes to tunes that crackle beneath punchy riffs and catchy hooks. Actual Persons Living or Dead pair meaty chord progressions and shambling beats beneath deadpan vocals, a welcome throwback to the dead-ahead menace of '90s indie rock. North Elementary bandleader John Harrison opens with his solo project, Jphono1. —Ashley Melzer