From the confrontational album title to the cuss words, Berg is working to shake the pop tag and turn it hardcore with a baller stance that isn't so much embarrassing as it is uninteresting.

It's pleasant, even comforting, which makes Forth as pure a sequel as possible: it's an album that offers more of the same many years too late, which will be enough for the legions of faithful who have waited to hear all the old characters back together again, yet seems a little pointless for those who no longer remain quite so invested in the band.

Ballads have always been his forte, a convenient vehicle for his quivering sensitivity and accidental melodicism, yet it's still startling how slow The Illusion of Progress unfolds, as Staind rarely muster the energy to move beyond midtempo even when they deign to crank up their amps for anthems of mild alienation or vague inspiration.

Recovery revisits Wainwright's back catalog and finds new meaning in the tunes he wrote as a young man.

Even if it falls a distant third out of the first three, the scattershot Recession is still a welcome and even risky step forward, one carried by its highlights and the newfound awareness that the cocaine grind isn't everything.

When the results are as fun as this album is at its best, it's hard to slam them too much for being derivative; better just to enjoy Friendly Fires as fleeting fun.

Although Strawberry Weed doesn't lodge its melodies into the listener's brain, it still makes a good case for repeated listens.

Gym Class Heroes' Quilt is very, very much of its time: it skates by on the surface, which is appealing for a while, but in large doses it can seem like too much empty style.

These songs aren't knockouts, but they're friendly and comfortable, the kind of sturdy roots-pop that seems like it'd be easy to pull off but must not be, as this delicate balance of conversational melody and guy-next-door appeal has proven elusive to Rucker for over a decade now

More often than not, Loyalty to Loyalty takes a disappointing stumble on it.

As it is, Now or Heaven is good enough but too derivative and uneven to be seen as anything other than a mild disappointment.

Way to Normal may win a few fans back who balked at the newfound sincerity that peppered his last two or three records, but a little more nuance and a lot less displaced teen angst would have made it palatable for everybody.

Brightblack Morning Light's intentions and actions are indeed admirable--they're committed advocates of much more than just drug legalization--but Motion to Rejoin struggles mightily to articulate a focus aside from tranquility.

Soft Airplane is a more focused outing; one that rarely travels outside the indie pop realm.

The Glass Passenger might not bare the same pop hooks as "Everything in Transit," but it does stay afloat under the weight of McMahon's past, which bodes well for the songwriter's future work.

Following up the their well-received 2006 effort, "Nice and Nicely Done," Delaware indie rockers Spinto Band deliver more angular, rambunctiously creative pop on 2008's Moonwink.

The band's underlying strength remains Chaplin's ability to turn a melodic phrase with grace and dexterity, which fails to lose its vitality no matter the musical context, but Keane's willingness to take these left-hand turns deserves its own share of accolades.

Upon first listen Little Honey is quite jarring for all of its textural and production shifts and dodges, but in time it settles into the listener as a mixed collection of decent songs that pack some punch, but no jaw-dropping wallops.

Arriving in 2008, Be OK furthers her Norah Jones-gone-pop approach with 11 tracks.

AC/DC still can sound invigorating - and make no mistake they do here, as much as they ever do on a latter-day record - but they just need to tighten up, cut back, crank it up and sound a little rude again.

Down to Earth's title depicts Jem as a grounded musician, but its wide-ranging sound suggests something different, as the singer has yet to find a style that fully suits her capabilities. Fortunately, her search for the perfect genre still yields some enjoyable songs, as shown by this album's handful of standout tracks.

This simple, easygoing mood stretches throughout the recording, which makes for a nice listen, but because a lot of the songs blend together in this pleasant, dreamlike state, they're tough to remember by the record's finish, and they fade quickly from memory, as old dreams tend to do.

Sweaty Magic's fearless experimentation is admirable--and though its songs are far from flawless, there are enough keepers here to make it a fun, summery fling.

Covers winds up feeling a bit like an outdoor concert on a sunny summer Sunday afternoon: something that is wholly relaxing and not in the least surprising.

Though this album shows that Japanese Motors are on to something good, they'd be a lot better if they tried just a little harder.

Although Guest's interpretations work well as an accompaniment piece, it's the return-to-form original (also included here in its entirety) which remains the more essential listen.

The craft of Our Bright Future is impressive and Chapman's talents are as clearly evident as ever, but unfortunately this album offers precious little in the way of anything fresh or unexpected from this artist.

Catfish Haven, led by the booming voice and songwriting of frontman George Hunter, seem to have all the right ingredients in place to be something really special, so it's a bit mystifying why this second full-length feels like it comes up just a bit short.