CDs

Julian Casablancas: ‘Phrazes For The Young’
♦♦♦ 1/2
There are only eight songs on the solo turn from The Strokes singer Julian Casablancas. But it’s a jam-packed, wildly varied eight songs that surprise and connect, starting with the unexpected instrumentation.
“Out of the Blue” the opening track, has plenty of Strokes-like droning, driving guitar as Casablancas moans, “I know I’m going to hell in a leather jacket.” But there are a whole lot of synths on the track and that instrument becomes the prime soundmaker for the rest of the record.

Yet, “Phrazes For The Young” isn’t so much a turn away from garage rock as a recasting it in ‘80s dance rock clothes, leading to the bubbling, irresistible single “11th Dimension,” the rock ‘n’ soul of “4 Chords of the Apocalypse” and the dark clattering “River of Brakelights.”  Casablancas’ Iggy-style croon floats across the tracks, cool as ever. — L. Kent Wolgamott
Buy if you like: The Strokes, The Libertines

Weezer: ‘Raditude’
♦♦♦1/2
“Raditude” is an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink affair, with Weezer moving from sitar-tinged Eastern-flavored philosophic rock on “Love Is the Answer” to a club anthem complete with rap break on “Can’t Stop Partying.” Yet the diverse seventh album from the now veteran band somehow more than holds up.
Consistently catchy and entertaining, “Raditude” mines adolescent/post-adolescent themes, hanging out “At The Mall,” checking out “The Girl Got Hot” and going “Tripping Down The Freeway,” in a straight pop anthem. Weezer main-man Rivers Cuomo may be a shade too old to still be exploring those subjects. But with the danceable beats and pop hooks Cuomo, his bandmates and special guests (including Jermaine Dupre, Lil Wayne and the All American Rejects) bring across the record, that really doesn’t matter. “Raditude” is cool and fun, another fine work from Weezer.  — L. Kent Wolgamott
Buy if you like: Fountains of Wayne, Nada Surf

BOX SET
Dolly Parton, ‘Dolly’
♦♦♦♦
Those who know Dolly Parton only as a busty pop cultural icon/movie star/talk show guest and purveyor of songs like “9 to 5” and “Islands in the Stream” likely don’t realize she’s one of the great country songwriters and one of the best singers the genre has ever produced.
That, however, is rectified on “Dolly,” a revelatory four-CD box set that covers much of her career. Superbly selected and arranged chronologically, the first disc is an ear-opener with mid-’60s songs produced by Ray Stevens that tried to cast the still-teenage Parton as a one-girl girl group. Then a duet with Bill Phillips on “Put It Off Until Tomorrow,” which she co-wrote, set her on her country path, leading to her pairing with Porter Wagoner and her solo career.
“Dolly” includes all the expected hits and signature songs, including the gothic “Jolene,” the evocative “My Tennessee Mountain Home,” and crossover chartmakers such as “Here You Come Again.”
Those songs, however, are just the beginning. The less familiar material, such as “Traveling Man,” features gritty, down-to-earth lyrics that puts Parton on par with songwriting contemporaries like Kris Kristofferson.
“Dolly” doesn’t include any of Parton’s recent bluegrass recordings, which are very good. But that omission doesn’t diminish this extraordinary set, which at last gives Dolly her due. — L. Kent Wolgamott
Buy if you like: Loretta Lynn, Patty Loveless

Bad Lieutenant: ‘Never Cry Another Tear’
♦♦♦♦
As a principle member of Joy Division and New Order, Bernard Sumner was famous for moody and downbeat synth-pop. But his new band, Bad Lieutenant, doesn’t sound anything like those influential groups. Instead, on the group’s debut CD, “Never Cry Another Tear,” Sumner and his co-horts – guitarists Phil Cunningham and Jake Evans – spin together a collection of guitar-based rocking pop that’s more akin to R.E.M. than anything synth-pop.
As good as his previous bands have been, “Never Cry Another Tear” shows that Sumner had hidden a serious talent for accessible pop all along. Tracks like “Twist of Fate” and “This Is Home” are brisk, packed with hooks, and dare it be said, upbeat sounding, while “Dynamo” combines the expansiveness of U2 with a hint of the Who. On “Summer Days,” the group moves the focus from jangling guitars to piano, but maintains the sharp melodic quality that defines the entire album, while “These Changes” and “”Walk on Silber Water” boast a nice melancholy quality.  Bad Lieutenant will have to go a long way to achieve a status that even approaches Joy Division or New Order. But “Never Cry Another Tear,” as one of the year’s best pop CDs, is an auspicious start. — Alan Sculley
Buy if you like: R.E.M., Matthew Sweet

Flight of the Conchords: “I Told You I Was Freaky” (Matador)
♦♦♦♦
If you put Monty Python, Lieber and Stoller, Barenaked Ladies, Weird Al Yankovic, Timbaland and “Saturday Night Live”-mode Justin Timberlake in a giant blender and pressed “puree,” the resulting concoction might contain a taste of the comic and musical genius possessed by Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie. The second album by the duo known as Flight of the Conchords is rife with hilarious songs about women, genitalia, angels, more women, fashion and feelings, all done with astonishing vocal, instrumental and lyrical prowess and sly genre references.
The disco-y “Demon Woman” is Earth, Wind & Fire, “Fashion is Danger” conjures Bowie, “You Don’t Have to Be A Prostitute” lampoons the Police’s punk/reggae “Roxanne.” Rap meets krautrock in “Too Many Dicks (on the Dancefloor)” and so on. But funny lyrics do not a hit album make; it’s the spot-on musicianship, killer vocals and impossible sexiness of these Kiwi comedians that makes “Freaky” work independently from their hit HBO show. The dudes rock. — Lynne Margolis
Buy if you like: Tenacious D, Spinal Tap

Stephen Stills: ‘Live at Shepherd’s Bush’ (Rhino/Eyewall/Atco)
♦♦♦
Like most of us, he’s not as young and pretty as he once was; age has also intensified the shaggy edges of his voice. But, like his old pal Joni Mitchell, Stephen Stills knows his range has changed, and he has revised his singing accordingly. His fingers, fortunately, have not lost their nimbleness. He’s still one of the finest guitarists out there, and it’s still a joy to hear him play — and sing, despite the fact his high notes lack the angelic clarity they once had.
The solo acoustic segment of this live disc, with his inventive tunings on those beautiful Martins, is more compelling than the electric section, which is more entertaining in DVD form than CD. But when he lets his fingers fly on “Bluebird” or sings his most famous tune, “For What It’s Worth,” he’s still filled with passion. And his cover of Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country” is captivating.— Lynne Margolis
Buy if you like: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, John Fogerty