A postcard-perfect summer pop jam, "Don't Give Up" is one of many delights on Chicane's much-anticipated sophomore album, "Behind The Sun."

Gone are the trip-hop-skewed beats, gone are the electronica mood swings, and gone is the band's signature downbeat vibe.... In their place are sunny rhythms, buoyant melodies, and hip-twitchin' beats...

Everclear's first collection since 1997's "So Much For The Afterglow" is an unabashed love letter to the '70s, when AM radio still ruled and pop music was simple, good fun.

This is a confident, competent new direction from one of rock's most intriguing figures.

While "Golden Greats" features some intriguing tracks and a healthy dose of Brown's trademark bravado, it doesn't come close to ringing in as powerfully as that of the Roses' era-defining sound.

A glorious blend of surf-pop and Brazilian rhythms?

There's an odd allegiance to the overblown prog-rock theatrics of Rush... and Yes... that seems incongruous alongside earnest Beatles homages... and straight-up, gloom-rock confessionals.

But for all the growth, the band's continuing inclination toward a bludgeoning sonic attack and Moreno's violent, impressionistic lyrics make this a tough pill to swallow for most listeners.

"Faith And Courage" is head and shoulders above what came before it. In fact, it is brilliant.

Ultimately, "Moon" may frustrate because it really is a little bit of everything: spastic, Talking Heads-ish funk ("Tiny Cities Made Of Ashes"), campfire acoustic yarns ("3rd Planet," "Gravity Rides Everything"), and Sonic Youth-ish rock epics ("The Cold Part," "The Stars Are Projectors").

This French quartet specializes in bubbly AM indie-pop that gives it more the feel of a male-fronted version of the Cardigans.

A wonderfully ambient collection of 10 songs

Along with absolutely stunning MC'ing across the board, "Quality" heralds the long-awaited return of the DJ to street hip-hop.

Steve Earle adds yet another masterwork to his disparate collection of classics...

Repeated spins also find this wonderful, soul-influenced collection to be one of slow, flowering appeal that ultimately ranks among the Glasgow septet's most rewarding efforts.

A very aware dance/pop atmospheric soundscape that is both electronically enhanced and orchestrally enriched.

A balanced, lyrically inspiring collection of songs.

On "Mad Season" the band serves up another slick collection of R.E.M. and Pearl Jam-influenced post-grunge classic rock tailor-made for ubiquitous radio play.

Nine of the album's dozen songs were written by Partridge, and each unfolds like an act of a melodious Shakespearean play -- lyrics drenched in imagery and metaphor, plots twisting through the experience of love and betrayal.

Pearl Jam returns to peak form with a 13-song collection of driving power rock reminiscent of the band's glory days of the early to mid-1990s.

The collection either encapsulates Sonic Youth's most endearing or annoying qualities, depending on how one feels about the band and the spoken-word poetics from Kim Gordon.

As she evolves, Spears is wisely sticking with age-appropriate material that her teen constituency can bond with.

It all adds up to a collection that successfully sets Hanson apart from the current teen-pop phenomenon that it helped start -- at least from a creative perspective.

There's little profundity here, but "The Geometrid" is undeniably a satisfying treat of bubbly, back-to-the-future escapism.

A strong collection of quick, higher-energy rockers.

The beauty of the record is that even though listeners expect Ween to be peculiar, the band's versatility and strength of songwriting keeps "White Pepper" intriguing through dozens of spins.

A wonderfully subtle, often moving collection of acoustic tunes that illuminates Young's incomparable tunesmithing and a voice that can deliver volumes of emotion and subtext in a simple phrase.

It's no wonder that visionary artists like Brian Eno and Tricky have welcomed the act with open arms. "Good Looking Blues" finds the group combining the best elements of its past... with bluesy horns, Jamaican beats, hip-hop drum loops, and avant-jazzy excursions.