Grade: A | Genre: Alternative Rock
Summary: No matter how you cut it, this music is awesome. It manages to somehow cheer you up, so it's perfect for when you're in a bad mood. It's also perfect if you're in a good mood.

Before I got this in the mail, my exposure to Secret Machines was pretty limited. I had their bizarre September 000 album (which is good, but not nearly as good as this), and I knew they were originally from Dallas. I realized a while ago that Texan indie bands are much better than anybody would expect them to be, so I told myself I should check them out. Unfortunately, there's an impossibly large amount of music out there and I have a limited amount of America bucks and Internet. I'm glad the mail still works, because I probably never would have gotten around to listening to this if it didn't. That would have been a crying shame, because it's real good.

Grade: B | Genre: Modern Rock
Summary: The Eraser is a nice day trip to spacious vistas that have become dusty in memory, but I'm really hungry for a real excursion into the new Radiohead.

Radiohead has always proved to be a curious creature on the modern rock scene. They entered as purveyors of the youthful grunge movement with radio staple "Creep," only to yank their sound by the leash into the electro-rock of The Bends and one of rock's greatest moments OK Computer. They would seemingly take on the helm of the Beatles of their generation with the quirky innovative genius of Kid A. Since then they have continued to forge the path into the esoteric and strange with little regard to their fan base or their overall place in music. Some would say innovators like this need not answer for their adventures into the land of the bizarre. They needn't carry any semblance of convention or need to tow the line that rock tries to strong-arm them to take. Yet as the blur of obscurity continues to muddy their sound, the listener finds it harder and harder to connect with these brilliant geniuses, try as we might. The rumor is that the forthcoming Radiohead effort is a thankful return to the dirges of rock they abandoned circa-The Bends. It's still largely under wraps at the moment so we can do little more than spin our speculative wheels. While they were prepping the world for their new direction, lead singer Thom Yorke had some music of his own itching in his head that was plotting its escape. Electronic blips flitter about as Yorke revisits the darker looks of Kid A in the fine release The Eraser.

Grade: A- | Genre: Rock/Pop/Dance
Summary: A Fever You Can't Sweat Out marries rocktastic beats with a dance floor that refuses to silence the pulse of gyrating bodies. These songs are the fuel to the fire.

Rock may try on as many different variations as Michael Jackson's face, but you can always guarantee it will never be too far removed from its kissing cousin addictive pop. Be it Foo Fighters or recent radio fodder Fall Out Boy, creating that surefire radio hook is the key to cementing your tune in the minds of the fickle music listening public. Usually I lampoon these ruthless media hounds for feeding the soulless music machine, but every so often you run across an artist that wrestles this pale formula to the ground to grind up some quality where you were certain that none existed. The smart band that has done the unthinkable is Las Vegas quartet Panic! at the Disco. They are the first band signed to Pete Wentz's (Fall Out Boy) Decaydance Records, and their debut effort A Fever You Can't Sweat Out marries rocktastic beats with a dance floor that refuses to silence the pulse of gyrating bodies. These songs are the fuel to the fire.

Grade: A | Genre: "The production is progressive, but the reason is retro. The chords are cold-blooded murder. I named it neo-necro." (From "Necromancer")
Summary: For now, Gnarls Barkley will just be the newest and most eccentric act to stir your musical senses. They are primed to break the mold like Gorillaz did and should be on your radar. My only complaint...what took so long?

Review: DJ Danger Mouse became infamous for brilliantly mixing Jay-Z's Black Album over The Beatles White Album. With support from Jay Z himself, The Grey Album (free download), as it is appropriately called, buzzed the underground and created a strong cult following that included trend setters like Gorillaz who tapped Mouse to produce the follow up to their self-titled debut. The end product, Demon Days, torched the competition and created wannabes out of those that everyone wanted to be.

Now, DJ Danger Mouse teams with Cee Lo, from the "Dirty South's" Goodie Mob, to create Gnarls Barkely. Both are respected in their own right individually, but when you combine the two, you get an epidemic of gnarly beats over retro vocals that feel postmodern at the same time. Imagine Marvin Gaye heading up Outkast at their most inventive and you're only three quarters of the way to what Gnarls Barkley's St. Elsewhere has become.

Grade: A | Genre: Brit Punk/Pop
Summary: Whatever People Say I Am, That Is What I Am Not is a first class ticket to life in all its dirty, fast paced charm. Lets hope the filthy riches of success, that the music buying public are showering them with, doesn't make these blue collar chaps forget what made them hungry to begin with.

The new punk is alive and thriving in rock. Just look at the explosive popularity of bands like the Killers and Franz Ferdinand if you are fishing for proof. These hard-hitting popsters come packing nostalgic lunchboxes and a newborn's love for the Clash. Many bands have latched onto these lucrative coattails, hoping to cash in on this ticket to honeys and the bling. Inevitably, we hit saturation point where we've just heard enough. They need to prop a sign up saying go sell crazy some place else cause we're all full. Then we have a band come along called the Arctic Monkeys. Funky name aside, they are plying their bleeding guitars and drum assault in this same space, but it sounds amazingly fresh and exciting. Almost like the revolution was waiting for a new scrappy hero to take it to the next level. These indie rockers are definitely taking the music world by storm. Their debut album Whatever People Say I Am, That Is What I Am Not cracked the UK and the Australian charts at number 1 in its first week of release. This accomplishment is unheard of from a band without a major label backing them with a barrage of advertising and paying DJs under the table to make their newest golden boy into a household name. They did it the old fashion way through touring, building a fanbase via the Internet and playing catchy as hell music that has to be passed along to a friend.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Alt-Country
Summary: Fox Confessor Brings the Flood marks Neko Case's most accomplished album recorded to date. It's fat in its maturity and drunk with its love for the music.

How many people can say they've been permanently blackballed from playing the Grand Ole Opry for being obscene? The historic venue that launched such country legends as Hank Williams and Patsy Cline slapped that distinction on one Neko Case back in 2001 when she finished her set topless. The fiery haired beauty says she wasn't trying to court controversy with her breast-baring move. A girl gets hot up there under the spotlights. Since the headlining event, Case has gone on to cement a solid solo career, singing her own unique blend of country, blues and gospel heisted from a time long past. She's also doubling up vocal responsibilities as the lead female vocalist of the super group the New Pornographers, an entity starting to make some major waves of its own. Soon Neko will probably get jammed in a crossroads where she's forced to choose between the quirky loops of the Pornographers or devoting herself completely to her burgeoning solo work. Until then we'll chug both of them down our ears and try not to loiter our thoughts too long on pondering such a day.

Grade: B- | Genre: Light Pop
Summary: Birds doesn't have that magnetic single like Beautiful Collision did in "Get Some Sleep," but on the whole it shows a greater consistency as Runga continues to grow as an artist.

Bic Runga is an artist hailing from lush landscapes of New Zealand. She has literally defined the music scene in the land of Kiwi, notching two multi-platinum selling albums that set records for album sales on the isle. She's branched out from her native land to tour from the edges of the globe and has stirred up international acclaim among the music intelligenca for her low-key work. Her most recent album, Birds, is introduced as a sibling of her past work. Quiet, a bit awkward, yet beautiful in its silent touch, Birds continues the rich tradition Runga has forged.

Grade: A | Genre: Brit Rock
Summary: The Kooks debut, Inside In Inside Out is a fun record by a fun band with a fun name. They're punk with modern rock flare who don't have to hope that their music will be adored by the in-the-know masses because it just will.

Named after the 5th track on David Bowie's Hunky Dory, The Kooks are the latest and probably the most promising new Brit rock band to come out since Bloc Party. A "skuzzy fresh faced group" (so they like to describe themselves), this foursome are a highly energetic unit full of thrills and youthful vigor. Listening to these lads, you feel a sense of rejuvenation and empowered youth, and you're proud that you're still cool enough to have heard of a band that most have not.

Inside In [and] Inside out, The Kooks have a debut that brightens an English scene full of mopey rock stars with tissue paper stuffed down their jocks. Lighten up Chris Martin because Luke Pritchard (vocal, guitars), Hugh Harris (lead guitar), Max Rafferty (bass guitar), and Paul Garred (drums) are bringing it with their mix of alt rock sprinkled over punk-ish bravado.

Grade: A- | Genre: Indie Rock
Summary: Whenever anybody is asked to describe the music of Pink Mountaintops, they talk that it's all about sexing. All right cool, what music isn't? Calling them the band that likes sex is like saying Mick Jagger is the guy that likes tight pants. It might be the most noticeable aspect, but it isn't the only one.

The core of Pink Mountaintops is Stephen McBean. He has quite a history with heavy music (punk, goth, metal), and it bleeds through on Axis of Evol. Think of what you'd want to listen to if you were wrestling a crocodile or riding a Harley at night in the middle of nowhere. It's like that. It gets you pretty damn pumped.

Grade: C- | Genre: Modern Rock
Summary: I can only hope that after the excessive noodling and doodling they have served up this time, this once-impressive, fun, up-tempo bunch of guys can get back to what they do so well...writing catchy, memorable tunes.

All the hubbub that surrounded The Strokes sophomore release, Room On Fire, for being too short in length seems to have weighed heavy on the bands tousled heads. On the group's latest and least interesting album, First Impressions Of Earth, Singer/Songwriter Julian Casablancas has penned 14 new tunes almost as if to silence former critics. Nice try.

Apparently for The Strokes, more is less. What was once a very cool sound (as New York as the band The Velvet Underground from whom they take nearly every cue) has been chucked in an attempt to mature and expand their horizons. They have only made it clearer how good the last release really was.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Rock
Summary: She Wants Revenge debut disk shows extra helpings of promise. Its not going to change the way you look at music, but it will help you get lost in a sound so old that its new again.

Truly original voices in music today are damn near extinct. What artist can really say they haven't melded a lifetime of influences to sculpt their sound? At best, you have a well-textured vision, running along a vibe another band has already gotten us comfortable with. At worst, you have a carbon copy, knock-off that might as well play local dives as a blah cover band. When your ears first become acquainted with She Wants Revenge, its impossible to not take a beeline straight to Interpol. Yet Interpol is basically just a derivative of Joy Division with a smack of Depeche Mode. As you dig further into She Wants Revenge's sonic cache, you see touches of David Bowie, a flicker of the Cure and even contemporaries like Lake Trout. Shoot, the band's name even sounds like it was cherry picked off a track on a Joy Division album. This amalgamation of sound mesh together to form an enticing album that can't stake its claim on originality, but knows how to maximize the tools at its musical forefathers.

Grade: B- | Genre: Light Rock
Summary: Thomas' new album is a good one, yet never peeks its head into greatness. While its safe enough to finally launch her music to a wider audience, it lacks that intense emotional punch that defined her debut and was flirted with on Laughter.

The first time I discovered Rosie Thomas was many years ago opening for Josh Rouse at the Red Light Cafe in Atlanta. She wore what can only be described as a sock dress that looked like it was pulled off a character in a Dr. Seuss book. Once she started her set, her voice never rose above a whisper during the entire performance. Its like the songs were so fragile that she had to carefully pull them out of her bag to show us, only to wrap them back up and pack them away once the final note had trailed off. Then, rather inexplicitly, she morphed personalities to become a stand-up comic, donning the ridiculous getup of Sheila to relentlessly stab at the audience's funny bone. I left the evening thinking, "what a curious songwriter." Her talent was undeniable, but I think her softer tone slid me into a sleepy trance of sorts. In the wash of new artists, she disappeared from my view. A year later, I heard the beautiful song of empowerment "Wedding Day" on a Paste Music compilation CD. It took a while before I plugged 2 and 2 together, realizing this beautiful songbird and sock dress girl were actually one in the same.

Grade: A | Genre: Indie Rock
Summary: They scrubbed away the surface of ultra-hate to reveal music both dark and extremely passionate. The Great Destroyer could well be their masterpiece.

Known primarily as purveyors of exceedingly slow, molecule-halting tunes labeled as slowcore, Low has gradually moved towards a bigger and more complex sound that can safely be shelved with other serious rockers of the day. The Great Destroyer fills the room with music that is lyrically engaging and sonically captivating. Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker deliver another serving of their remarkable vocals surrounded this time by a backdrop of gorgeously heavy guitars.

Grade: C+ | Genre: Indie Pop
Summary: Lab Partners aren't a bad band; they just need to grow past this early stage a bit. They've found rich soil to grow in. Now they need their own special bloom to show off.

Lab Partners aka Michael and Amy Smith, Michael Volk and Todd Carll obviously listen to a lot of Jesus and Mary Chain when they aren't pretending to be them. Since "The Chain" dropped out of site after the much underrated Munki LP, there has a been a gaping hole once occupied by the shoegazing bedheads, Jim and William Reid. Well, that vacuum seems to have been opted by Lab Partners on their debut for Reverb Records, Wicked Branches.

Sounding like more of a tribute than an original release, Wicked Branches occasionally emerges from beneath the obvious influences to reveal the groups own take on all things mopey. Unfortunately, they are few and far between. In the interim they treat listeners to songs that sound left over from Stoned and Dethroned.

Grade: A+ | Genre: Alt-Country
Summary: Okkervil River's Black Sheep Boy is in everybody's top ten list for 2005, but the EP they released this November seems destined to be a collector's item.

Since I'm a Texan, I'm biased towards any music that comes out of my state. So I love it when I hear music that allows me to speak in absolutes like "Stevie Ray Vaughan is the best guitar player ever" and "Chamillionaire is the best rapper alive". Both of those statements are 100% true, and so is this one: Black Sheep Boy Appendix is the best EP you will ever hear. I feel comfortable making that statement because I don't think many of you are going to go on EP-buying sprees to prove me wrong. Oh yeah, and because it's absolutely amazing.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Indie Pop
Summary: With two well-crafted releases behind them, and the positive buzz growing around them, The High Violets could find themselves on many playlists in the coming year.

On To Where You Are, The High Violets second long player, vocalist Kaitlyn Ni Donovan has taken over as fulltime lead vocalist, giving guitarist Clint Sargent the freedom to concentrate on building a thick canvas of sound for the singer to set her wispy voice against. The result is something that would be at home next to copies of old Curve, Slowdive, Lush or Cocteau Twins releases. More pop friendly than any of those bands ever managed to be; The High Violets seem poised to make indie/pop crossover history.

Grade: B- | Genre: Experimental Rock
Summary: blackAcetate isn't a fantastic album, but it's still rock solid. People aren't supposed to be this good once they're done with a popular band (Velvet Underground), but John Cale somehow pulls it off.

Ex-cellists shouldn't rock this much. What right does the guy, that turned more than one Velvet Underground song into a screeching auditory weapon, have to come back decades later and make a solid album? Everybody knows that people this old are supposed to suck. You put out good music for a short while after your band ends, then you either give up entirely or disappoint fans with the music you keep putting out. I guess John Cale just didn't want to go out the Lou Reed way. Don't get me wrong. Lou Reed is badass numero uno in my mind for all eternity. It's just he isn't nearly as cool as he was.

Grade: B | Genre: Alt-Country
Summary: 29 isn't Ryan's best, due to the toll the darker moments take on the collection as a whole. There are certainly a handful of flirtations with greatness that make this disk a must for any fan of his work.

Ryan Adams is such a beautifully complex songwriter. Most artists consider it a crowning achievement to get one album out the studio door in a year. Mr. Adams' 29 marks his third release for 2005 and actually, should you count the 2-disk set Cold Roses as two separate entries, you could easily say he's got four notches in his belt for 05. How is that even possible? I know an artist usually writes 40+ songs for an album that get whittled down to the dozen or so finished tracks. So either Ryan is writing a song-a-day or maybe he's just not letting any dogs hit the studio floor. Given the high quality of each release, I'd have a hard time believing that he's just releasing everything including his lullabies to his kitchen sink. I think the truth lies somewhere in between. I think we are looking at one of the most prolific songwriters of the age. One not hindered by the confines of a single genre. He's someone who doesn't mind selling GAP jeans if it means he can jam out with Willie Nelson. He's an artist who'd be playing in the subway station, sleeping on the filthy floors, if it meant he could have an audience for his music. Welcome to Ryan Adams at 29.

Grade: A | Genre: Country/Rock/Blues
Summary: The Legend of Johnny Cash is a the perfect introduction to an American icon. It seems a shame that he had to travel to the great beyond before many of us cleaned out our ears to hear this sweet music.

It's been two years since we marked the passing of one of music's true legends, Mr. Johnny Cash. With his signature head-to-toe black garb and the deep vocal stamp he planted on his songs, he created an unmistakable presence that won't be matched. His passing has stirred up a string of compilations and the fabulous biopic Walk the Line starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. If you haven't had the extreme pleasure, be sure to catch one of this year's best films. As ashamed as I am to admit it, in his living years Cash was never more than a name to me. He was a larger than life persona, and I had my foolish preconceived notions of what he was -- country. To peg him in that tired old genre is like saying Moby makes dance music because of a single you once heard on the radio. Both artists are so much more than the convenient categories we try to file them away in. One of the year's best compilations is The Legend of Johnny Cash. It is a sharp collection that captures the heart and spirit of a man who gave so much to music.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Holday/Vocal Jazz
Summary: Diana Krall fulfills her tremendous promise that jazz aficionados have sensed was simmering in her for many moons. She's given us reason to get giddy about Christmas music again.

It was the week before Thanksgiving, and I was at the local outlet mall looking to beat the Christmas shopping madness. Though I managed to escape the feeding frenzy, there is no escaping the Christmas music. They already had it going strong in every store I ducked into as if there were hypnotic suggestions woven into the lyrics to assist us in loosening our wallets. Now I don't have a problem with Christmas music on the whole. Nat King Cole, Harry Connick, Alvin & the Chipmunks are artists clearly meant to accent the season. My issue is that you have a couple hundred songs getting played over and over and over again like some demented Santa's top 40. I still wake up in cold sweats trying to escape the hour loop of modern Christmas tunes, needled into me from doing an ill-advised stint at the GAP one holiday season. So though Christmas music should be avoided like the plague, there are a handful of "must have" disks to tone down the chaos of family dinners, serenade present opening, or perhaps be the seduction mix of your role-playing as Santa and the bad elf.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Prog-Rock
Summary: Hopefully, with re-masters like Fool's Mate (and many others too plentiful to mention) the public will get a better picture of art-rock instead of immediately thinking that mediocre groups like Styx, Kansas, and Queen were the be-all and end-all of this much maligned rock form.

Released in 1971, Peter Hammill's first solo outing; Fool's Mate showcased a somewhat different side of Van Der Graaf Generator's front man. Less ponderous than VDGG's offerings, Fool's Mate gathers together a dozen songs written in the mid-sixties by Hammill (for the most part) and brought to life with the help of his fellow band mates.

The tunes vary from whimsical nonsense like "Imperial Zeppelin" to atmospheric tone poems like "Viking." Hammill's piano playing and acoustic guitar work are both expressive, even when sparse. As for his voice, there is little of the bellowing and shrieking that fills albums like Pawn Hearts. These songs are more along the line of "Refugees" from 1970's The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other.

Grade: B | Genre: Rock
Summary: Today's band sees a maturity beyond what we could have expected from the Swedes, and though it may not be what we fell in love with originally, it is surely what we can come to be comfortable with and whose company we can enjoy.

The Cardigans (Nina Persson - vocals, Peter Svensson - guitar, Bengt Lagerberg - drums, Magnus Sveningsson - bass, Lasse Johansson - keyboard, acoustic guitar) flirted with our guilty pleasures in the mid-90's with candy-coated tunes from Emmerdale, Life and First Band on the Moon. It was Nina Perssons' sugary sweet voice that washed away the dirt stains left by the grunge acts that ruled the time's album charts. Here was a band from the land of Abba who reinvented the pop sound with their 60's hippie chick grooves and somehow found space in a crowded industry covered in flannel while moshing in their Doc Martens.

Whether it be our love for the music or our fascination with the sexiest pop tart of her time (we'll call Ms. Perssons the Blondie of our generation), these Swedes lifted us from our funk and made pop cool again. Pardon the overly used expression, but they were our alternative to the alternative. Super Extra Gravity is the latest from The Cardigans, but will it still be a love affair or are we ready to move on to the next "It" thing of the moment?

Grade: B | Genre: Prog-Rock
Summary: If you are looking for classic background music to play at your next party, try The Moody Blues. If you want to wake up your party, maybe even send some of the more timid ones fleeing into the night, put on some Van Der Graaf!

Following their 1975 release, Godbluff, one of England's most severely serious proponents of progressive rock, Van Der Graaf Generator used the momentum of that dark vision to create a more hopeful set of songs. Still Life, though characteristic of Van Der Graaf's usual "Sturm und Drang," rests a little easier on the ears. Eventually, like all things Van Der Graaf, the lions are let out of the cage and the listener must bolster himself for the fangs to come.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Prog-Rock
Summary: Van Der Graaf Generator labored in obscurity virtually their entire career leaving behind one of musicdom's strangest catalogues of sound. Godbluff is a great bit of prog-rock history getting its due.

In the early seventies, just around the time that everyone began to go disco crazy, there were a faithful few who refused to give up on the majesty and pomp of their beloved art-rock. Bands like Caravan, Gentle Giant and Strawbs proudly waved the flag of pretension, but it was on Britain's Famous Charisma Label that two of the most overblown progressive rock bands offered up to the masses their gloriously twisted idea of music. One band, Genesis, after a string of brilliant oddball releases, went onto huge popularity when they lost the groups leading visionary, Peter Gabriel. The other band, Van Der Graaf Generator (named after American physicist Robert Van de Graaf's high voltage invention) labored in obscurity virtually their entire career leaving behind one of musicdom's strangest catalogues of sound.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Alt-Southern-Rock
Summary: Whether or not super stardom is in their future remains to be seen, but as long as they continue to mature with their music (and they will) brighter days are still ahead.

If Neil Young suddenly went Alt-Southern-Rock, he would be heading up the Louisville Kentucky quintet, My Morning Jacket. Widely known within indie circles, mainstream audiences my have noticed their alter-ego, Ruckus, performing Skynrd's southern fried classic "Freebird" in Cameron Crowe's latest melodrama, Elizabethtown. Missteps aside, their fourth full length album, Z, has been creating a mild stir on the CMJ retail charts with their meshing of sounds spanning the music spectrum from reggae to R&B to ambient...all under a sourthern rock umbrella. With more keyboards, sturdier guitar riffs and the freedom to experiement, Z takes the jacket off My Morning Jacket to reveal a band who's not afraid to challenge themselves and their audience.

Grade: A- | Genre: Blues/Soul/Rock
Summary: While Try! isn't the perfect disk, it is one juiced with daring, flinging the doors of possibility open for John and his fellow troubadours.

Its really nice to see a talented musician reach the point where he can bust out of the chains the music machine has wrapped him in to become what he was truly meant to be. It's not easy to give your carefully buffed, Grammy winning, multi-platinum image the finger to begin charting a new destination. That is effectively what John Mayer has done in forming the John Mayer Trio. He's letting his inner soul brother hog the mic. He's feelin' the blues right through to the tips of his hair. Anyone who has seen him in concert could sense the winds of change were coming. There are those defining moments where he just trails off in a song like "Neon" and, with the audience about to rip the roof off the auditorium, he shares this quiet space with his guitar where everything else is simply the static of life. That's John at his purest and for the first time, with Try!, I think we are afforded an unfiltered look into the musician's soul. It's not the slick pop tart Mayer we've come to know, but the man at his most honest.

Grade: A- | Genre: Dance
Summary: The DFA has been the only dance label I've listened to regularly the last couple years. A mix of every single they've put out this year is perfect. It's like they read my mind.

The DFA has been making quite a name for themselves recently. They've been putting records out for a while now, but most of the world received their introduction when Echoes by The Rapture came out in 2003. That record was amazing enough to ensure that I would be paying close attention to whatever the label put out for quite a while. Turns out that was a good idea. I've gotten to enjoy LPs from LCD Soundsystem, The Juan Maclean (kind of enjoy one from Black Dice), and have my mind blown by the sprawling DFA Compilation #2. This excellent 50-minute dance mix compiled by Tim Sweeney and Tim Goldsworthy is the natural next step; it rocks hard, and if you actually want to do some dancing, it's got you covered.

Grade: C | Genre: Electro Pop
Summary: At the end of the day, Witching Hour leaves me at a bit of a loss. Does Ladytron want to be known for dreamy atmospheric compositions a la Cocteau Twins, or do they want to spark the incendiary trance beats, burning up the dance floor?

The Liverpool-based Ladytron have returned with their electronic fuzz of futuristic impulse on Witching Hour. Hour marks the bands third LP as they continue to settle into their sound and define why Ladytron's spacey dose of haze should make the fickle listening public perk up and take notice. They seem to have pinned down the niche, adding flavor to synth beats and beautifully stilted vocals. Will it ever propel them into mass stardom, securing their own spotlight? Probably not, but Witching Hour does help the group to evolve, fleshing out new dimensions for additional exploration.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Rock/Jazz/Blues
Summary: Thompson has created a very compelling disk in Black Yankee Rock. The music housed within the covers spouts forth powerfully expressive emotion and a sound that can only be described as some tangled mess of rock eating jazz birthing soul.

So say you're surfing through the never ending slacks of disks at your favorite hip music store. Suddenly, you run across an album plastered with the controversial Confederate flag, painted in black, green, yellow and red. The album just happens to be curiously entitled Black Yankee Rock. Now what do you think you're getting yourself into when you slide this bad boy into the CD player? Marc Anthony Thompson, or Chocolate Genius Inc if you prefer, is the man responsible for this interesting assembly of improbable partners of image and words. The music housed within the covers is just as complex, spouting forth powerfully expressive emotion and a sound that can only be described as some tangled mess of rock eating jazz birthing soul. It doesn't apologize for being unconventional. It revels in it.

Grade: B+ | Genre: Hard Rock/Metal
Summary: Through all the troubles they've had recently, Sevendust has come through and made a great album that only has a few problems that can easily be remedied in the future.

After the decidedly riff-free and depressing Seasons failed to make an impact with rock fans, metal heroes Sevendust were at a loss. With label TVT wanting them to make a radio-friendly album and subsequently showing no support, plus guitarist Clint Lowery leaving the band to create Dark new Day with old friends, the future looked bleak for the Atlanta-based metal band.

Instead of giving in, they recruited their old friend Sonny Mayo (formerly of Snot), changed labels (Universal-owned Winedark), took some of the lessons they learned from Seasons and incorporated their more traditional breakdowns and chainsaw-sounding riffs to make the appropriately titled Next.

Grade: A- | Genre: Electronic
Summary: Nobody likes lounge music. But when you add some keyboard work that totally doesn't make you gag and some wonderful hip-hop beats, you've got solid gold. It's something that isn't anything like lounge music.

When I think of French music, the only things that come to mind are that little "Muffin Man" song (which is in no way related to France) and the accordion. These two stupid little mental associations will forever be overshadowed by General Elektriks. Things you should know about General Elektriks:

* It's a one-man band. Herve Salters is some kind of crazy keyboard genius that has performed for Blackalicious, Maroons, Femi Kuti, etc.
* It's a Quannum Project. Jackpot!
* French people are awesome.

Grade: B | Genre: Hip-Hop
Summary: On Blackalicious' new album, they manage to kick every ass in the rap game but their own. The Craft is better than most rap mucking about right now, but Blazing Arrow is a pretty tough act to follow.

Blackalicious totally dominate. Everybody knows it. Gift of Gab has such an insane flow that he sounds like a rhyming auctioneer, and Chief Xcel makes such incredible beats that everybody else should just quit. But hip hop heads expect this. Blackalicious have been proving for years that they're the bomb, and that spoils people. Plenty of musicians have faced the same dilemma: you make an amazing album (or two, in Blackalicious' case) and then people expect something better. This doesnnt mean The Craft is a sophomore slump (Blackalicious have been in the game too long for this); it's better than anything most artists could hope to produce. It just isn't as astoundingly good as the last couple albums.

Grade: B | Genre: Prog Rock
Summary: What made You Forgot It In People one of my favorites, from the dynamic rhythms to the lush melodies, are evident on this record, but because of Producer Dave Newfeld's self-imposed commitment to top himself, Broken Social Scene forgets that it's about musical growth and not about out doing your big brother.

My first impression of Canada's Broken Social Scene came via the stomach turning "Lover's Spit" off the Wicker Park Soundtrack. Lyrics like, "All these people drinking lover's spit / They sit around and clean their face with it," created squeamish imagery that overshadowed otherwise luscious melodies forcing my finger towards the skip button. It was that track that extinguished my desire to pursue the band further until a friend (thanks Mark!) handed over a collection of albums that included Broken Social Scene's You Forgot It In People. It was a symphonic masterpiece that I almost never got a chance to experience and one that quickly became part of my must have list for 2004 (eventhough it came out 2 years before). Now, just one year after my late discovery and 3 years since You Forgot It In People, Broken Social Scene returns with their 3rd self-titled release full of musicians (six new members to an already 10+ piece band) and ruckus tunes for your listening enjoyment.

Grade: B- | Genre: Synth Rock
Summary: While Playing the Angel isn't quite the breathtaking genius that Depeche has spoiled us with in the past, it is a welcomed return to form that will hopefully chart their path in albums to come.

Do you remember the first time you fell in love with music? There's always a certain song, a particular album or seeing an artist shed their earthly skin on stage that made you hand over your soul and never look back. There are about a half dozen albums that signaled my musical awakening in high school: Morrissey's Your Arsenal, Tori Amos' Under the Pink and especially Depeche Mode's Violator. I took to this album like a baby to mother's milk. It had that intense dark edge, fueling that teenage angst, with an innovation of sound that would influence an entire breed of musicians. In later years, I would dig up gems like 101 and Music for the Masses, but my relationship with Depeche's more modern works would prove a rockier ride.

Grade: A- | Genre: Brit Rock
Summary: Elbow is able to inject clever, light hearted lyrics to soften the bluntness of a broken heart. It's a collection of pessimism in search of a cure.

After being dropped by Island Records within a year of being signed in 1998 and then again by EMI within just a couple of months, vocalist Guy Garvey, drummer Richard Jupp, organist Craig Potter, guitarist Mark Potter, and bassist Pete Turner, rolled up their sleeves and took Elbow to indie label, Uglyman. After two released EP's, Newborn and Any Day Now, the quintet garnered critical acclaim and a brand new contract with the major UK label, V2. Their debut, 2001's Asleep in the Back, was a nominee for the Mecury Prize and gave the band the attention it deserved. It's quite a leap for a band in whom no one had any faith.

Now, just a year after their successful follow-up, Cast of Thousands, Elbow is back with their ambitious 3rd release, Leaders of the Free World. Recorded in the BLUE ROOM at Blueprint Studios with their media artist mates, The Soup Collective, Leaders took shape in an environment of hidden cameras, toys, computers and mystery. The final product is a low-lit work of blissful exuberance in its most understated form. File these boys in with Coldplay, Doves, etc. if you must, but let it be known that these Brits are Elbow-ing (pardon the pun) their way to the forefront of the Brit Rock Movement.

Grade: B | Genre: Experimental
Summary: Wanna get haunted? Tender Buttons feels like Jefferson Airplane is back with a vengeance.

Are you familiar with the song "White Rabbit" by Jefferson Airplane? It's the one that Dr. Gonzo is listening to in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas when he's on acid and soaking in the bathtub. He orders Raoul Duke to throw the radio into the bath tub and electrocute him when the song reaches the climax and Grace Slick is going crazy. Every song on Tender Buttons sounds like that song. There are no disturbing drug references or corrupted allusions to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and the songs don't make me want to die from electrocution in a bathtub in Vegas, but Broadcast has done an amazing job taking the construction of that song and the feel of it and applying it to this album. Take that as you will.

Grade: B | Genre: R&B/Soul
Summary: Mr. Lidell has a killer voice and the perfect music to go with it. If he had been around about 30 years ago, soul & R&B might still be taken seriously.

There's just something about Jamie Lidell. His music sounds 30 years old at most times, but then that Warp Records touch comes in and it sounds like the future again. And damn, dude's got some kind of voice there. He sounds so much like Otis Redding it borders on eerie. However, that also means his voice is taken for granted and might even seem a bit unoriginal. Fortunately the good overpowers the bad here and we get to enjoy this guy and his crazy pipes.

Grade: C+ | Genre: Vocal Jazz
Summary: Cullum needs to get back to taking more chances with his material and really pushing out those stuffy boundaries of jazz.

For some time, vocal jazz has been dominated by the ladies. Norah Jones, Diana Krall, and Madeleine Peyroux have all made significant in roads to shatter the jazz mold, venturing into uncharted genres like pop, country, and rock. Beyond seminal crooner Connick Jr., the men's invite to the party got lost in the mail. Last year, youngster Jamie Cullum burst onto the jazz scene carrying with him a hip catalog of tunes and a voice that betrayed his years. He was a fresh face that had the passion of youth, looking to breathe life and vitality into an art that usually finds appreciation among the older set. Cullum covered modern artists like Jimi Hendrix, Radiohead, and even Pharrell Williams with impeccable grace, always adding a tasty spin on modern classics. His second album Twentysomething put him on the map, making the music world perk up and take notice. Can he match that brilliance with his latest release Catching Tales?

Grade: D- | Genre: Pop
Summary: You wouldn't pick up Playboy for the articles, right? So, why would pick up PCD for the music? Unless the CD comes packaged with a projection screen featuring the Pussycat stage act, stay away from this stinker and catch the live show instead.

I had to do it. Those Pussycat Dolls have taunted me long enough with their MTV music video lap dances that I had to give their debut PCD a listen. Laugh it up because once you see these girls wiggle their a**es, it's off to download city you'll go. Just as you would flip through the movie channels in search of highbrow fare only to stop at soft-core skin-emax romps, the Pussycat Dolls are your diversion from anything you would want to share with mom.

Debuting at Johnny Depp's Viper Room in 1995, the Pussycat Dolls have made a name for themselves as the sexiest burlesque inspired peep show this side of every man's wet dream. Led by Carmen Elektra, with routines created by famed choreographer, Robin Antin, these girls have teased and straddled their way into the trendiest live act to lure guest performers like Christina Applegate/Aguilera, Gwen Stefani, and Charlize Theron. In 2003, Antin decided to start from scratch by holding auditions for a new dance troupe of Pussycat Dolls that could ultimately become the hottest dance act since Britney Spears.

Grade: B- | Genre: Microhouse
Summary: Jackson And His Computer Band has made something here that reminds you of that one really friendly smart kid. You try to hate it/him, but in the end you know you're not kidding anybody.

I typically don't enjoy anything with the word "microhouse" attached. I'm scared of the glitchy nuances that compose music by the likes of Akufen and Michael Meyer. I can't pretend that Jackson Fourgeaud's music isn't microhouse, but I also can't pretend that I'm not pretty impressed with it. Whereas other microhouse songs just feel like they're trying to (in my opinion) force a funny-sounding barrage of brief vocal samples down your throat, Jackson And His Computer Band make songs that have a definite texture to them. Of course, some of them miss the mark, but the majority of the album is enough to convince me that if used for good, not evil, microhouse can be a pretty fun niche genre.

Grade: A- | Genre: Progressive Rock
Summary: The sparse verses are down right tame, but when flowing through Tom Smith's pipes they seem more profound than if one were to read them off a lyric sheet.

Still waiting for the Killers to trump their immensely successful Hot Fuss, or is Franz Ferdinand's latest, You could Have It So Much Better, not enough? Editors are the latest British export to play their hand at the synthesized post-modern punk rock movement with their debut, The Back Room. Originally dubbed Snowfield, singer/guitarist Tom Smith, lead guitarist Chris Urbanowicz, bassist Russell Leetch, and drummer Ed Lay, are energetic upstarts who have crafted a crisp production of haunting melodies and tireless aggression. This is an indie band with real mainstream flare and are apt to take over the world...or atleast your iPod.

Grade: A | Genre: Brit Rock
Summary: You Could Have It So Much Better is pure fun locked in a CD case.

You'd think that after surviving an explosion of success, it would cause a group of guys to kick back and milk that puppy for every dollar its worth. Not the Scottish working class lads of Franz Ferdinand. A year and a half after their stunning debut captured the esteemed Mercury Prize and their hit single "Take Me Out" splattered over the airwaves, Franz is back packing so much heat its likely to singe your eyebrows. You Could Have It So Much Better is a tasty treat fueled by a battalion of slick beats with disco's shimmer and punk's snarl. Get ready for Franz Ferdinand to take you out and rip you up.

Grade: B | Genre: Rock
Summary: The momentum is there and if 30 Seconds to Mars could catch it at the right time, this could be the next big thing.

First off, let's get the whole actor-wannabe-musician thing out of the way. Yes, Jordan Catalano from My So Called Life or better yet that kid that got his "Angel Face" smashed in by Tyler Durden,