An eclectic and enjoyable mixture of pop, light rock, light country, and tinny, horn-happy soul, Velvet is almost compulsively cheery.

Besides knowing how to pick an evocative voice to work with, Delerium ably mutes big, often funky bass lines with easy flowing beats while adding mood-altering touches.

All the star power in the world can't save sub-par material.

The group has begun to grow up a bit.

Walking a thin line in a stylistic minefield, Orbit has successfully reached his goal. Classical purists may be appalled by the concept, but even they may have to admit that he's done a better job than anybody could have expected.

It's the "experimental" tracks like the humorous "Hey Sexy Lady," laced with mariachi trumpet, flamenco guitar, and castanets, and the bubbly old school reggae-country hybrid "We Are the One" that elevate Lucky Day to higher ground.

Comes with the same muscular, confrontational power that made The Sickness so infectiously exciting, but twists things just enough to make the second time sounds as fresh as the first.

Tweekend certainly isn't mind-blowing or revolutionary, but it's abundantly clear that the Crystal Method has found its sound: the hard rock and hip-hop influences that inflected Vegas move to the forefront, and the tempo comes down a few notches, thus emphasizing thunderous bass and hardcore head-bobbing.

Throughout the mix, Oakenfold follows the proven formula of prefacing more beat-heavy, climactic tracks -- such as Max Graham's "Airtight" and Tone Depth's "Majestic" -- with otherworldly vocals-only tracks by Dead Can Dance and Sabel, among others. The build-up is no doubt effective on the dance floor -- where Oakenfold excels -- but the effect sounds a bit repetitive after the first few occurrences.

Unfortunately, a couple of the early tunes are so slick as to lose all feeling, while some of the lyrics are dumber than a doormat, but as party albums go, this will keep you up for a while.

Armed with an arsenal of keyboard riffs and Merritt's impassive baritone, the resulting sound is a velvety mix of '80s-era new wave, bossa nova beats, and melancholy pop.

On Scratch, they masterfully explore breakbeat fusion, flowing smoothly from scratch to hip-hop to rock and everything in between.

Getting through this album is a challenge. While Van Helden hits the mark on a few occasions, the bulk of Puritans irritates and frustrates as annoying samples create agonizingly long intros to otherwise solid tracks.

Somewhat of a Squarepusher overview: digitally diced, partially digested, and sometimes brutally regurgitated, of course.

Beyond the music, X's sincere subject matters keep the album enticing.

On Atomic, the band unveils a sharper pop-rock sound, one that's so infectiously catchy that you'll feel like an inoculation is in order.

As works of art go, it isn't exactly Blood on the Tracks, and it isn't as blissfully fine as Millennium, but Black & Blue is unquestionably the most seamless boy band release of the year.

One of the band's most colorful listens.

As the disc progresses, her caustic diatribes against men get harder to take.

The disc is strangely uneven... t's puzzling right from the start, as what should be the climax -- a rambling, 18-minute version of "Cowgirl in the Sand" -- appears first.... The remaining tracks vary widely in quality.

The album finds footing in jazzy downbeat arrangements, and its hip-hop aftertaste gives Charango (and Morcheeba as an entity) a needed one-two punch.

Innovative and gorgeous, equally recalling Dionne Warwick-era Bacharach and contemporary ambient pop.

Bon Jovi's best one-two album kickoff punch since Slippery When Wet's "Let it Rock" and "You Give Love a Bad Name." But unfortunately, it's downhill from there.

From Here On In may grab you with a slide-guitar hook here, a tiny melody or vocal quirk there, after repeated listening. But it's hard to justify the five or six hours necessary to achieve such meager nirvana.

But just as a couple of cool originals on its debut distinguished Orgy from the Antichrist Superstar cover bands current working the bar circuit, if only slightly, so too do a clutch of strong tunes on this, its second album.

Any hopes of redemption are dashed by the same bland production that plagued his first release.

Golden Lies shows that even when a good band goes bad, it can still make a great record.

Staying true to an Underworld-influenced formula of riff-punctuated house music will inspire new converts to the menagerie, as this record's grooves are simultaneously original and accessible.