Jon Lindsay writes the kind of indie guitar pop songs that stick in your head because of a catchy chorus or a well-picked guitar line, and it’s not until you listen to them later that you realize they’ve wormed their way into your head because they’re sly and subtle and impeccably clever; he is a staggeringly talented songwriter. He’s also a great musician, and he was as spell-binding on stage with just his guitar and a kick drum and a single keyboard player on Thursday night as I bet he is with a band. His first solo release, Escape From Plaza-Midwood, is wonderful, and the stuff I heard from his upcoming Summer Wildnerness Program is just as fantastic. The show was underpopulated because of the Hopscotch kickoff party at Tir Na Nog the same night, which was a damn shame. Don’t miss him the next time he (and his band) come through Raleigh or Chapel Hill or wherever.

It seems funny that I’ve been seeing Wylie Hunter & the Cazadores for a year, and this is only the third or fourth time that I’ve seen them do their own stuff. I saw them cover Springsteen — knock three Springsteen covers out of the park, in fact — back in January, and I still hear Springsteen when I see the band do their own stuff, but not in a bad way; in a fond and complimentary way. Like Jon, they’re finishing up a full length due to drop next year, and like Jon’s, based on the songwriting and how great the band is, it’s going to be amazing.

It was a good night.