Best Spoken-Word Disc

With the occasional exception of standup comics, most people who use common speech as their main form of creative expression don’t fare well when it comes to compact discs. So give veteran wordsmith SETH credit for combining poetry and music in a singularly bold way. The sounds whipped together by Bob Peek, Scott Seeber and Edward Marshall are simultaneously accessible and adventurous — the ideal match for SETH’s sometimes highfalutin but frequently arresting turns of phrase.