The real standouts here, though, are the ballads. With "I Deserve It" and "Gone," the legacy of the corporeal and spiritual Madonna lays down amid the simplicity of basic percussive beats and acoustic guitar.

Spoon is the best British band to come out of Austin, Texas.

But with gems like “Keep From Moving” and the country-tinged "Under the Tracks,” and even the vaguely disturbing, second-hand Bowie of “Lover’s Leap," the Creepers rein in their messier instincts, paring the proceedings down to smart, singalong and ultimately giddy jangle-pop.

"Amnesiac" deepens the mystery that Radiohead began with its curious, largely electronic 2000 release, "Kid A," and certainly won't satiate those awaiting the lauded band's supposed return to guitar-heavy epics.

By delivering pert '60s-esue pop numbers with a twangy drawl, and by playing rockabilly riffs on torchy blues odes, Jack and Meg balance their divergent influences well.

An accessible, if far from revolutionary, work.

While nothing else on "Play" quite matches the slinky intimacy of its Top 10 single, "Jaded," every song has something to root for, whether it's the title track's inventive genre-shuffle, Tyler's spontaneous yodeling or the way "Under My Skin" continues the band's love of gender-bending.

A platter of hot-buttered R&B popcorn, liberally sprinkled with salty social critique, "The Id" finds Gray getting disco-freaky while instigating her "Sexual Revolution," and playfully rapping about her kids with Slick Rick on the funky burner "Hey Young World II."

Deeply original? No. A rollicking, sing-along good time? Yes.

As always, Kravitz infuses his rock with enough funk to get you moving, and his catchy choruses will echo in your head long after the album ends.

Carpenter delivers a batch of reassuring songs -- about confidence in yourself and the world -- making you wish she'd check in a bit more often.

Unfortunately, the record is burdened by a pretentious, overarching narrative about "the Wise One" and his struggle with "the Banished Ones."

As unhurried and sonically majestic a slab as Low has ever produced.

Suggests Kraftwerk crashing a party at the Playboy Mansion.

Songwriter Doug Martsch again succeeds in striking an impressive balance between guitar-saturated bombast and impeccable melodic taste.

Sisqo proves he's more than a flash in the pan.

When it clicks, "Aaliyah" transforms the confusion of young adulthood into exhilarating freedom

Though it's no "Bloodletting," it does make for a satisfying reminder of that masterpiece.

"Lateralus" is primarily a collection of puzzling time changes, haunting vocals and beyond-intricate percussive patterns that create a theme rooted more in Eastern philosophy than in rock and roll.

Its touchy-feely lyrics maintain the brooding undercurrent that runs beneath the bulk of the band's catalogue.

A maniacal slab of DIY punk rock ?

Not only does Marshall make each of the album's dozen songs her own, but she leaves you straining to recognize the original in what she's marvelously reconfigured.

An infectious record.

His loving treatment of these 16 tunes (counting one hidden track) is testament to both the rich legacy of American music and Alvin's own reverence for things past.

Fans will be happy to find Jakob more upfront, and keyboardist Rami Jaffe utilized, but differently than past straightforward organ parts.

Admittedly, he seems to be missing a sparring partner like McCabe and thus, "Alone" often suffers a lack of tension. Still, Ashcroft's unabashed joy is rather contagious.

The band neither succeeds wildly nor fails. There are only a few reminders of the lackluster dance sounds in its recent work... Otherwise, what dominates are the straight-ahead rhythms that drove the early days.

Rarity collections can often times be largely unsatisfying to anyone but die-hard fans, but not so with ASTH. Songs such as "Bring Your Lovin' Back Here," "78 Stone Shuffle" and "Steve McCroski" stand up against the best of anything the band has recorded.