Nestling welcomed experimentation among familiar tunes, Beam is hedging his bets with Kiss Each Other Clean.

While the sound is looser with strummed acoustic guitar, sax, autoharp and brushed drums, it contrasts sharply with Harvey's thematic adherence to war, guns, bloodshed and bleak landscapes.

A couple of tracks feature liberally processed vocals, but the singing acts less as a melodic agent than as one more source of instrumental texture.

Thompson's newest album, Bella, is a logical follow-up to his 2008 release, offering a similar mixture of folk, country and soft rock.

For its third album, Expo 86, the band tempers the musical diversity of its predecessors and focuses more on standard rock fare.

This adjunct to "Animal" is unapologetically escapist and highly programmed fun.

The casual nature of the sessions-Dylan coughs during "Blowin' in the Wind" and stops "Talking Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues" to correct a lyric, for instance-only enriches the experience.

Given Kelly's absurdly effortless melodic flair, the result certainly satisfies. But Love Letter could use more of his effortless absurdity.

Recorded with polish and pluck at Nashville's Blackbird Studio, the 11 tracks on their self-titled debut set sound like they could've been captured at any of the family picnics or church services where the Secret Sisters honed their harmonies singing Doc Watson, Everly Brothers and spirituals.

As a series of off-the-cuff side projects have shown, though, Jones' musical interests are more varied than they might appear, a fact that's demonstrated neatly on ". . . Featuring," which collects more than a dozen of her collaborations with a wide range of other acts, including Willie Nelson, Belle & Sebastian, OutKast and Foo Fighters.

A minor release for Curren$y still bests most major hip-hop releases, and this Pilot Talk sequel relishes in the rapper's expanding set of skills.

Simply put, Weezer needs to exorcise the metal demons and find a balance that works.

The rapper proves he still knows what it takes to make a solid, well-rounded album.

The Gift, the second release from famed "Britain's Got Talent" contestant Susan Boyle, is a bit of a tweener: mostly a holiday album and partly a follow-up to last year's massively successful "I Dreamed a Dream."

Needless to say, West has proved once again that he is most on point in the face of adversity.

The artists' masks are designed precisely to keep us guessing about what's going on in their heads, but who knew it was this?

While the title of the Peas' newest album, "The Beginning," might suggest a retreat from this everything-to-everyone agenda, it's everything but.

Most important, it's big fun, whether you buy into the high concept or not.

By using the lineup shift as a chance to explore different terrain-namely, eschewing pop choruses and traditional vocals-Underoath's sprawling, at-times disquieting music is newly realized.

This is Stereolab for the age of the short attention span; but if it's a swan song, it's just as representative of the band's body of work as anything in its 20-year catalog.

For something drawn from so many obvious sources, Amoral is refreshingly original.

This Stockholm-based DJ outfit scored a dance hit earlier this year with "One (Your Name)," its hard-hitting collaboration with Pharrell Williams of N*E*R*D. But separately, the men of Swedish House Mafia-Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello-have been rocking dancefloors for years, so here we have a 24-track primer designed to update new fans on each artist's earlier work.

At 36 minutes, the set is quick, generally uptempo and full of the Neptunes' mixtape-ready bangers, yet Williams finds his groove during moments that won't rattle any trunks.

It's a lot to take in, but his aim is true as always.

A decade and five albums into its career, the rock band certainly sounds as youthful as ever.

Catchy verses and get-your-hands-up chants are layered among '80s synth and keyboard lines on these 10 tracks.

Given her current partnership with the crossover kings at Big Machine, one hopes that an album of pop covers might loom in McEntire's near future. (How great would she be on "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars?) Until then, we'll have to make do with "All the Women I Am," which offers another welcome helping of her well-established sound.

Given his role as one of pop's most respected songwriters, Neil Diamond might be expected to fill a covers album with underappreciated obscurities by tunesmiths less highly regarded than he.

Willowy Los Angeles art-rock group Warpaint summons a remarkably heady atmosphere on its debut album, The Fool, which follows a buzzed-about EP released last year on Los Angeles-based indie Manimal Vinyl.

Too many songs fail to equal the quality of the guest list, meaning the substance of Olympia never quite matches its undoubted style.

Another victory in a storied career, Small Craft on a Milk Sea is Eno's attempt to reiterate the relevance of the long-player through its unique sequencing.

Lil Wayne's latest album, I Am Not a Human Being, is not as experimental as the rapper's previous rock-tinged "Rebirth" set that arrived earlier this year, and most fans will likely appreciate this.

The guitar legend still plays with the energy of a teenager-albeit a highly talented one-just starting out. And when he gets his dander up on such tracks as "Too Soon" and "Let the Door Knob Hit Ya," Guy can still diss like a street gangsta

Sale el Sol manages to bridge the divide between the old and new Shakira with a spark that keeps you listening to the very end.

After 15 years of recording together, the members of Guster deliver their poppiest, most cohesive effort with Easy Wonderful.

There's a spare but exotic flavor to the 11 tracks on Die Antwoord's new album, $O$, which was first released on the Internet and now comes in a spruced-up major-label version that's noticeably polished but retains the subversive and exotic vibe of the original.

New York duo the Books continue their tradition of using intriguing vocal samples behind folk-and electronic-based compositions on fourth album "The Way Out." This time around, the group also mixes jazz-fusion with quirky dialogue that ranges from meditation speeches to intimate voice mails.

On its eighth full-length release, Glasgow, Scotland, indie pop group Belle & Sebastian ditch their sad-vibes-hidden-by-happy-melodies schtick in favor of legitimately upbeat songs.

On Kings of Leon's latest album, Come Around Sundown, the family Followill makes a strong bid to please longtime fans as well as the recently converted.

Fistful of Mercy's sound shouldn't surprise fans of any of those acts; nor, for that matter, should the appealingly casual quality of the nine songs on "As I Call You Down," which the musicians wrote in three days.

With his latest album, Mixed Race, Tricky picks up where 2008's Knowle West Boy (named after his rough birthplace) left off, exploring his diverse background, sonic heritage and frequently unforgiving surroundings with sounds as much as words.

Toby Keith has been writing and playing country music long enough to know every one of its conventions-and how to twist them around.

Given Healy's winsome vocals and his good-guy image, the grab at gravitas doesn't always connect.

Consider Eric Clapton's 19th solo album a largely successful bid to be all things to all people, including himself.

The Gin Blossoms continue to concoct melodic hooks framed by a mix of jangly alternative pop-rock on the band's newest album, No Chocolate Cake.

Having defined its gauzy sound on previous albums, Halcyon Digest Deerhunter finds the group expanding it with knockout results.

Gucci shifts focus on songs like "Making Love to the Money" and "Dollar Sign"; the songs don't express his love for the illegal lifestyle but rather recount the financial benefits of taking that path. In usual hip-hop fashion, "The Appeal" also offers something for the ladies ("Remember When," featuring Ray J) and the club-goers (the Swizz Beatz-produced "Gucci Time").

None of the new spice here is likely to change anyone's mind about who Bad Religion is or what the band does. But you have to admire these guys' determination to keep things tasty.

This is also some of Tankian's most accessible material to date, whether it's the grooving verses and exploding choruses of "Left of Center," the cascading ebb and flow of "Borders Are . . ." or the fierce charge of "Electron."

Currington sings that he's "not known for doing a lot," but he's certainly found a way to do something that's undeniably his own.

As the band's first disc for Epitaph following a 15-year major-label run, the stripped-down Hurley mostly delivers what you'd expect.

Plant has steadfastly resisted a return to the Zep fold; Band of Joy makes us glad for that.

On its latest release, A Thousand Suns, the six-piece rock act truly breaks the habit of everything we've heard from it before.

Even those too young-or not yet born-for the Vaselines' heyday can appreciate the earnest fun of Sex With an X.

Flamingo finds Brandon Flowers exploring big topics (love, religion, the complicated charm of his Las Vegas hometown) over even bigger arrangements.

At 71, Staples still knows how to hang tough and shows no signs of slowing down.

Interpol is undoubtedly a solid effort, but solid shouldn't be satisfying for a band that has proved to possess the talent of indie rock's elite class.

The Thermals may not change your life, as Harris promises on the opener, but they keep on issuing front-to-back fun albums like few other bands.

The album, which comes in 10- and 18-track editions, sounds better on paper than in reality. But there is the odd moment-such as "Railroad to Heaven," with Solomon Burke at his God-fearing best-that rises above its creditable but decidedly rote surroundings.

Sara Bareilles returns with more bouncy and intricate piano melodies on her sophomore album

There are enough brains and brawn to make this an "Asylum" any head-banger would be crazy to avoid.

Bingham's writing is filled with stark images and canny observations, which is evident on such tracks as "Self-Righteous Wall" and album opener "The Poet." Look for this gifted young artist's star to keep rising.

The set has a fullness and energy-not to mention an arsenal of layered guitars-that give it the kind of muscle we haven't heard from the band in quite some time.

The lyrical focus, along with raw production and eclectic instrumentation (including mandolin, strings and autoharp), give the 10-song set a heat that's honest and personal, but not quite the riveting bearing of souls that Heart is known for.

Strange Weather, Isn't It? is not life-altering fare, but the album's 40 minutes of club-approved funk-rock signals another noteworthy entry in the band's discography.

While Fantasia delivers a soulful, laid-back album with tinges of gospel, her distinct voice is most enjoyable when singing heartfelt ballads.

Comprising eight new songs plus There Goes My Baby, the new set alternately bumps and throbs as a reinvigorated Usher further paves his comeback path.

The set may not feel as catchy as Ra Ra Riot's well-received debut, but fans should appreciate the band's musical growth.

For all the pomp and watermelon costumes, Perry is primarily a smart and personal pop songwriter. And Teenage Dream shows-in carefully selected spots-that she's ready to grow up.

The 12-track set plows some new ground for Little Big Town, from the way Karen Fairchild and Jimi Westbrook's duet intertwines with the group harmonies on the title track to the traditional country flavor of "You Can't Have Everything" and the bluegrass tinge on "Little White Church."

With production by Joe Barresi (Coheed and Cambria, Queens of the Stone Age) and Howard Benson (Three Days Grace, My Chemical Romance), Apocalyptica continues to impress with its unique ability to meld classical with metal.

The delicately crafted "Coming Home" is Maiden's most effective power ballad ever, while "The Man Who Would Be King" delivers a slice of medieval mayhem. And the jam section during the cut "Isle of Avalon" suggests a metal take on the Grateful Dead. With all that, The Final Frontier boldly goes where few metal bands have gone before.

The Beach Boys mastermind's dip into the world of George & Ira Gershwin is a love's labor that makes plenty of sense and opens up at least a few of the tunes to illuminating interpretations.

The sense of abandonment hinted in the title of David Gray's second album in less than a year, Foundling, could be a reference to the work's minimalist nature.

Although Darker My Love implements a laid-back style on Alive As You Are, the group still engages the listener and delivers a solid set.

Every ounce of pain and acceptance rings true, not only through his raw vocal virtuosity but also thorough very live, immediate-sounding production that leaves deliberate, closely guarded space in otherwise active arrangements.

Clearly, Kem isn't self-conscious about his love of love--and we love him for it.

The country veteran's first album for Toby Keith's Show Dog label seems well-suited to Keith's manly-man worldview.

The EP concept behind All About Tonight may seem small, but like its predecessor, it delivers big.

He sounds as unflappable as the subject of his first hit.

With the dust having settled around Zakk Wylde's unexpected departure from Ozzy Osbourne's band, better attention can be paid to Order of the Black, the new album from Wylde's Black Label Society.

Los Angeles rock revivalists Buckcherry waste no time getting down to business on their latest album.

The Remix's 10 songs won't replace Gaga's chart-topping hits, but the tracks offer enough interesting angles to attract Gaga diehards as well as casual dance music fans.

At 16 tracks, this dense, complicated set covers considerably more stylistic territory than either of the band's previous albums.

With sophisticated grace and evocative lyricism, Melua has made a brave reinvention that raises her already lofty artistic bar.

The result is a 12-song collection of washed-out summer tunes perfect for beach outings and late-night house parties.

On Praise & Blame, that gusty Northern soul voice sounds as righteous and true as it does when he's operating in the more carnal regions of his catalog.

There's a musical and rhythmic uniformity among these 13 tracks that might lose ears beyond the album's brisk 29 minutes, but it reflects a consistent summer ambivalence to which most anyone can relate.

Nightmare is the group's best work yet. It's a sweeping, quasi-thematic epic whose nearly 67 minutes mixes punky abandon with prog-rock ambition and muscle with musicality.

It's rare when every member of a band can claim both vocal and instrumental contributions to an album, and even more rare when each contributor is exceptionally talented.

Olson is still processing some pain, but there are plenty of bright moments.

A tendency to let the songs run too long notwithstanding, this 100 Miles is a path Crow was certainly wise to tread.

Ross raps unhurriedly, encouraging listeners to mull over his every word. Teflon Don is one of this summer's blockbusters.

Korn III (a reference to this lineup as the third incarnation of the band) moves forward more than it retrenches, referencing some stylistic trademarks while introducing some fresh dynamic sensibilities.

Although MAYA is an undeniable testament to M.I.A.'s inventiveness, the album is so jam-packed with beats that any statement that she is making gets lost in translation.

For the listener, disconnecting will be all but impossible.

Through it all, Finn's durable songcraft never fails to enthrall.

His Bob Dylan-esque voice combined with the hauntingly beautiful arrangement of the classical guitar throughout Admiral Fell Promises is hypnotic, trapping listeners in a melancholy spell of wonder.