Perry Farrell - Song Yet To Be Sung

Aided by an array of talent including reggae legend Mad Professor, Jane's guitarist Dave Navarro, PFP's Martyn LeNoble and Jon Brion, Farrell hop-scotches through a number of different dance-driven styles. "Seeds" is a light, swirling stab at Orb-flavored techno, "To Me" rides a rubbery dancehall rhythm driven by the piano of War's Lonnie Jordan and "Nua Nua" is a Middle Eastern tinged outing sparked by clattering beats. Among the themes touched on are ones of global renewal (a drum-and-bass flavored "Happy Birthday Jubilee") and the spiritual importance of song in society (the ambient title track). Although cuts like "Say Something" and "Shekina" occasionally drift off into the ether, Song Yet To Be Sung finds Farrell once again finding a way to challenge both himself and his fans.

Galaxie 500 - This Is Our Music

R Indie Classics
On This Is Our Music, Galaxie 500's third and final album, the band continue their deliberately paced, three-chord, Velvet Underground-influenced pop project. Though there's little here to distinguish the album from the group's previous efforts (save perhaps their strikingly straight-faced cover of Yoko Ono's "Listen, The Snow Is Falling"--a remarkable feat in itself), This Is Our Music delivers spare, introspective tunes characterized by ghostly moods, 4/4 guitar strums and Dean Wareham's charmingly unaffected, drowsy vocals.

Surreal lyrics and simple, haunting guitar lines make songs like "Hearing Voices" and "Spook," both lovely and oddly poignant. Shortly after the release of this album, Wareham left Galaxie 500 to mine a similar musical vein with his band Luna.

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Bill Callahan - Woke On A Whaleheart

When the '90s lo-fi revolution was in full swing, Bill Callahan was its Leonard Cohen, turning out dark ballads under the nom de plume of Smog. Woke On A Whaleheart finds Callahan stepping out from behind his alias for the first time. Accordingly, there's an increased sense of directness here, although the arrangements don't stray too far from the Smog style (casual acoustic and electric strumming; gentle, loping rhythms). There's also a greater feeling of emotional ease, if not contentedness. Whether or not this comes from his romantic involvement with neo-folk pixie Joanna Newsom, it adds an intriguing new chapter to the Callahan/Smog story.

Ladytron - 604

Is this what we once imagined the future would sound like? On 604 Liverpool-based synth-pop collective Ladytron show all the electronic hallmarks of 1980, only without the "New Dawn of Technology" neurosis. Remember in those days how man feared the totalitarian march of the machine? How we worried that our friends might be electric? That our minds might be toys? That video would kill the radio star? That human labor would be redundant and we'd all be reduced to a Mao-suited existence in some morose metropolis? OK, so 604 does contain a few Marxist nursery rhymes (sung by stern Bulgarian female vocalist Mira Aroyo) but it also contains a version of the theme tune to '70s sit-com "Are You Being Served" (sung sweetly by the kittenish "Bond girl" voice of Helen Marnie). Ladytron's inspired, accessible electro-pop is where latter-day, Tarwater-style Krautrock meets the melodic appeal of the Human League, the Pet Shop Boys and Abba, with just a little bit of the sociosexual commentary of Black Box Recorder thrown in for good measure. Gary Numan was never as much fun as this.

M. Ward - Post-War

The title of M. Ward's fifth full-length, Post-War, begs the question, post which war? From early 20th-century folk blues to Tin Pan Alley hooks to the various indie-rock schools of the early 2000s, Ward's music works as a suitable elegy for the wounded and dead from across the landscape of American history. Equipped with a voice that is at once rough-hewn and tender, Ward sings about trials of the heart and the soul with a lyrical approach that is touching, evocative, and poetically cryptic. And while his songs can recall the rustic, bluesy charm of a train-hopping troubadour ("Rollercoaster;" "Requiem"), lush studio touches, including a lovely use of reverb (particularly on the haunting opener "Poison Cup" ), and guest appearances from new-fangled roots artists such as Neko Case and My Morning Jacket's Jim James mark the album as very much of its era. POST-WAR places Ward at the vanguard of the ever-evolving Americana musical tradition, with one foot in the past and another in a future all its composer's own.

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Rufus Wainwright - Want One

After his sophomore album, Poses, sailed critically but failed commercially, Rufus Wainwright fell into a pattern of hard drug abuse. Luckily, the support of friends and family landed him in rehab. Emerging newly sober and clearheaded, Rufus threw himself into his work. The result is Want One, an unabashedly honest, musically sprawling record that finds the vocalist reaching a new level of maturity.

It becomes quite clear during the borderline satirical album opener "Oh, What a World" (which goes so far as to reference Ravel's "Bolero") that Wainwright has met his musical match in producer Marius de Vries (U2, Bjork). Rather than reigning in the singer/multi-instrumentalist's vision, de Vries understands that the sincerity and conviction in his voice keeps even the most over-the-top of tracks grounded. Standout moments include the epic "Go or Go Ahead," "14th Street," and the stunningly candid "Dinner at Eight." Want One is the work of an artist who is, above all, determined to live life to the fullest.

Graham coxon - Love Travels At Illegal Speeds

2006 release of the sixth solo album by the former Blur guitarist. Coxon's 2004 album, "Happiness In Magazines", precipitated him reaching a higher level of public awareness, capped off by the award of Best Solo Male Artist at the 2005 Nme Music Awards. Per contactmusic.com, "This is a great album and a great addition to anyone�s music collection. There seems to be a bit of everything on this album and I just can't get enough of it. This is without a doubt a must for all Blur fans and for all indie music fans."

Organ - Grab That Gun

Up in the Great White North, the buzz is palpable. Knighted the latest Canadian "it" band, The Organ have been riding a wave of attention and acclaim revolving around the band’s Mint/604 Records debut, 'Grab That Gun.' With cover stories in Canada’s biggest music monthly (Exclaim) and myriad reviews and features from coast to coast — including unanticipated yet welcome coverage in American mags Fader and Venus — The Organ are ready to take on the U.S. with the release of 'Grab That Gun' on November 2, 2004. Based around the warm, melancholic tones of Jenny Smyth’s Hammond organ, Katie Sketch’s Morrissey-meets-Alison Moyet vocals and Debora Cohen’s guitar that alludes to Johnny Marr, the band has been consistently compared with the best songwriters of the early ‘80s new-wave, writing structured songs around minimal arrangements and creating a nuanced, textured sound that is brooding and catchy at the same time. The best of many bands can be found here — whether it is the weaving counterpoint melodies between organ and bass, the lean bell-like intonation of sparkling guitars, the charmed tenacity of the snare, or the suspended lamentation of Sketch’s cascading vocals — and much excitement is borne out of the desire to name The Organ’s sound in precise terms.

Beirut - Lon Gisland

Beirut's five-song EP Lon Gisland works as a nice stop-gap for those anxious for the next full-length from wunderkind songwriter Zach Condon. Condon's penchant for unique instrumentation and world-music accents (particularly klezmer and Balkan brass) is in full flourish on this brief 2007 release, as best revealed on the rousing instrumental "My Family's Role in the World Revolution" and the gorgeous reworking of Gulag Orkestar's "Scenic World"--which gets fleshed out with the requisite accordions, ukuleles, and mournful brass, recasting the song as a bittersweet death march. Condon, indisputably, has talent and vision; that he can pack as much of it into five songs as he does here is staggering.

Zoot Woman - Zoot Woman

Sophomore album from French electronica act featuring Jacques Lu Cont, the followup to 2001's 'Living In A Magazine'. For fans of Phoenix 'United'. Ten tracks. Copy Controlled. EMI. Nothing on this second album is as irresistible as "It's Automatic" or "Living in a Magazine," two alternate-reality number ones from the debut, but there's no less than five contenders for the Top 20 of that same chart here. The band's got the whole package, from top-shelf songcraft to soft synth-led hooks to dancefloor-ready rhythms (the bassist must know each and every Peter Hook line inside out) -- all the way down to the constant flitting between exuberance and melancholia. If a couple more American bands could only shed the put-on quasi-industrial elements from their otherwise synth-pop-oriented approach, we just might have our own equivalent of Zoot Woman to be proud of. Unfortunately, those bands are probably still scarred from treatment like the kind mentioned up top.

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Laika - Sounds of the Satellites

Laika's follow-up to Silver Apples Of The Moon is a delectable sonic eclipse of that record's Stereolab-isms and post-Krautrock sensibilities. But Sounds of the Satellites isn't retro or copyist: Laika mixes, moulds and melts layers of analog sound into a sublime potpourri that recalls mid-period Cluster, the aforementioned Stereolab, and early-'80s British synthpop.

"Out of Sight and Snowblind" has the identifiable feel of indie-rockers (Laika arose out of the ashes of the Can-referencing Moonshake) who have fallen in love with electronics and exotica, and are milking their Moogs with unbridled enthusiasm and naive delight. A bubbling froth of tin can beats, oozy synth peals and filtered organ curls, the track recalls the contemplative, twilight electro sonnets of bands that flourished on period labels such as C'est La Mort and 4AD (think M1-Alternative, early Moev, Blue Blue Blue and Insides). Laika trade in on numerous styles; rarely are they stationary, tripping on a quasi-hip-hop shuffle ("Almost Sleeping", "Prairie Dog") or percolating synth sambas ("Starry Night"). Sheer aural ecstasy.

Stars - Heart

Interesting orchestral pop instrumentation. Analogous girl/boy lyrics that are wonderfully original and clever, evoking fantastic imagery. Most situations described, though fictional, seem true to life. You may cry, you may sigh, and God forbid you may even relate. Stars' songs are just so damn romantic. If you want romance with all the trappings, this album is it. No love song played on mainstream radio will ever have the depth that Stars can capture. The album starts off with each band member offering their hearts to you, so saying "This is my heart..." Just listen to what they have t say and you too will become a lover. Fittingly enough this album was released one Valentine's Day in Canada. So why not spread the love?

Oh No - Doctor No's Oxperiment

For his third full-length LP on Stones Throw, Doctor No's Oxperiment, Oh No did some serious loop digging, journeying from the Mediterranean to the Middle East to sample everything from Anatolian folk records to Turkish psych rock. The end result is an incredibly imaginative work of instrumental hip-hop--a testament to the genre's great versatility.

The Veils - Nux Nomica

For the Veils' second studio outing, Nux Nomica, fiery frontman Finn Andrews, the son of Barry Andrews (XTC, Shriekback) assembled an entirely new backing band. The resulting album is far more accomplished then its predecessor, The Runaway Found, and features stark, urgent, and intense songs that justifiably warrant comparisons to Nick Cave and Jeff Buckley, as evinced on the wound-up "Not Yet" and the howling "Jesus for the Jugular."

Elliott Smith - Roman Candle

In a world full of self-pitying shoegazer troubadours celebrated for their own misery, Elliot Smith stands apart from the pack. At the time of this release, who could have guessed that this unassuming songpoet, with his hushed songs of alienation and turmoil, would receive national attention in a few scant years? The seeds of greatness that Elliot Smith would soon achieve are prominent on Roman Candle, his first full-length release. From the opening title track, it is apparent that Smith is not your average sadcore moper. He may shy away from the gaze of the crowd, but there is a fiery defiance inherent in his songs that transcends self-pity. The all-acoustic, Nick Drake-like format here would in due time be replaced by full-on, Brian Wilson-influenced production, making it all the more endearing in retrospect.

Television Personalities - Are We Nearly There Yet?

One of the few remaining original punk rock bands, Television Personalities revolves around the fragile psyche of Dan Treacy, whose talent for writing simple yet infernally catchy songs is still intact some 30 years after his first hit, "Part-Time Punks" (bouts of mental illness and a spell in prison notwithstanding). However, despite the snarky observation of "The Peter Gabriel Song" and the sing-song childish innocence of the title track, there's a distinct sense of adult insecurity in songs like "I Get Scared When I Don't Know Where You Are" and the confessional "You Are Loved."

Treacy sounds like he's having fun doing punk rock karaoke on the faux-rap "The Eminem Song," but the lyrics are deadly serious, and "All the King's Horses," which again sounds like karaoke, has an air of despondency. On the bright side, two enjoyable covers, of Bruce Springsteen's "If I Should Fall Behind" and the Killers' "Mr. Brightside," find the band in full punk rock effect, and the gorgeous "If I Could Write Poetry" is a classic, punk-flavored slice of synth-pop.

Lambchop - Damaged

Lambchop's Kurt Wagner professes to having a love-hate relationship with country music, and the Nashville band's sprawling music certainly takes in far more influences than one will find on Music Row. The gorgeous arrangements on Damaged feature a 15-member band, including a full-time chamber-music ensemble and two members who provide the subtle electronic soundscapes that link these 10 lengthy tunes. However, at the root of Lambchop's music is Wagner's pure country voice, which has the gravitas of Porter Wagoner and Lefty Frizzell. And like those artists, Wagner has a similarly conversational tone to his singing, delivering each song on Damaged in a hushed near-whisper that sounds cozily intimate over the grand, stately arrangements of songs like "Paperback Bible" and "The Decline of Country and Western Civilization."

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Art Brut - It's A Bit Complicated

Art Brut's 2005 debut Bang Bang Rock & Roll introduced the South London outfit's brand of bratty, conceptual art-punk. Ironic and arch, while also managing to rock with sincerity, Art Brut sounded like naive, irreverent school kids who were actually smarter than their teachers. It's not a shock that It's A Bit Complicated, the 2007 follow-up, doesn't branch far into new territory: to "mature" and "develop" would be against the band's M.O.

Instead, the album delivers more clever, brainy fare suitable for both pogoing and chin-stroking. Singer Eddie Argos applies his wry, biting humor to such topics as break-ups, adolescence, and pop music itself in his Fall-ish half-sung, half-spoken drawl. Meanwhile, the band slams and shuffles behind him with amps cranked, offsetting Argos's ironic stance with a raucous glee and pop smarts. Listeners not charmed by Art Brut's overall concept the first time out (and they are, after all, a concept band) are unlikely to be converted, but fans of Bang Bang Rock & Roll should give It's A Bit Complicated a well-considered spin.

Devo - Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!

Devo's 1978 debut is an absolute new wave/alternative classic. Produced by Brian Eno, the album serves as a great introduction to the band's quirky and highly original sound-- stiff grooves, robotic rhythms, and humorously intellectual lyrics abound. Although Devo is considered a joke band by some, co-leaders Mark Mothersbaugh and Gerald Casale are exceptional songwriters, capable of creating unpredictable song structures and contagious melodies (Soundgarden, Nirvana, and Robert Palmer have all covered Devo compositions). That said, Are We Not Men is one the band's best and most consistent records.

Kicking things off with the concert favorite "Uncontrollable Urge," Devo instantly transports the listener into its warped world, where potatoes (or "spuds") are considered sacred, mutants run rampant, and mankind is constantly regressing, or "devolving"--hence the band's name. More intriguing oddities follow, such as a totally reconstructed version of the Rolling Stones classic "Satisfaction" (its imaginatively funny video was an MTV favorite in the network's early days), as well as such fan favorites as "Mongoloid," "Jocko Homo," "Gut Feeling," "Come Back Jonee," and the creepy "Shrivel Up." A truly great album that certainly hasn't lost it's edge over the years.

Amy Winehouse - Back to Black

It doesn't take much listening to Amy Winehouse's 1960s pop period piece to realize that this is a tribute with an edge--nice girls back then didn't sing about boozing and rehab. Since her 2003 debut album, Frank, Winehouse has been a frequent presence on the gossip pages of the U.K. tabloids, and her songwriting here candidly reflects her experiences with drinking, sex, and drugs.

Back to Black's production is an artful blend of sophisticated '60s R&B and 21st-century stylistic poaching, with "Tears Dry on Their Own" incorporating elements of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," and Winehouse sounding like Billie Holiday fronting a reggae band on the old-fashioned cheating song "Just Friends." Densely packed with musical history and often conjuring a dark, Portishead-esque atmosphere, Back to Black is a sumptuous-sounding collection freighted with blunt confessionals of a lush life.

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Kraftwerk - Minimum Maximum

This sense of arrival marks the 2004 live album Minimum Maximum. The two-disc set captures Kraftwerk in action (well, as much action as you get from four men stoically manning laptops), and acts as a career retrospective. Aside from the cheers from the audience, there isn't much "live energy" here (Kraftwerk might just as easily have played a pre-recorded DAT of the performance), but the music sounds as crisp, fully realized, and dazzling as ever. In fact, modified versions of "The Robots" and "Autobahn" arguably improve on the originals, while pieces from 2003's excellent Tour De France Soundtracks round out the track list nicely. In all, this is a superbly selected set of the band's epoch-defining music.

Air - Moon Safari

Moon Safari , Air's full-length debut, is like a fuzzy, blissful daydream in which a glowing ambiance pervades over a crossroads of '60s French pop, '70s Philly soul and '80s Eurodisco. Rarely does the tempo reach mid, and when it does ("Kelly Watch The Stars" and "Le Voyage de Penelope"), it's on the strength of funky synth-pop grooves. Overall, their sounds are rarely less than kaleidoscopic, enveloping the listener in happy, high-IQ muzak. If it sounds somewhat disposable, it's because all good pop should. It is the fact that one can't leave Air's aural confections behind that makes Moon Safari great.