Arcade Fire, “The Suburbs” (Merge)
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Arcade Fire has largely put away the anthemic rhythmic bombast that has earned the Montreal indie pop collective comparisons to Bruce Springsteen and U2 on “The Suburbs,” making it far a different album than 2004’s bracing “Funeral” and 2007’s “Neon Bible.” The music still draws on U2 and David Bowie, swings toward Neil Young and sounds like The Cure on “Modern Man.” But there are no real anthems, only a couple fast punkish numbers and a tendency toward mid-tempo that would be samey if the songs weren’t so smartly written. The punky buzz of “Ready To Start” addresses the band’s position as indie rockers poised to become stars.

“Rococo” looks at the de-evolution of a music scene into hipster posing, and “Month of May” examines kids standing at concerts with their arms crossed, albeit not judgmentally. There are two song pairings that share titles, each featuring a song with Regine Chassagne, Win Butler’s wife, on lead vocals, as does the stripped-down, violin buzzing “Empty Room.” They are among the record’s most gripping songs, her voice connecting more immediately than Win’s. “The Suburbs” is meant to be listened to as an album, not a collection of songs. Arcade Fire wants an hour of your time, and it’s well worth it. — L. Kent Wolgamott
Buy if you like: U2, David Bowie

Gov’t Mule: “Mulennium” (Evil Teen)
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Gov’t Mule recorded this millennium-eve concert when we still had attention spans. Perhaps they should have released it then, when a triple disc might have kept us interested. Today, it’s an endurance test. Take disc one—or better yet, skip most of it; it doesn’t get interesting until “Towering Fool”—six songs in. Guitarist extraordinaire Warren Haynes showboats too much on covers of “21st Century Schizoid Man,” “We’re Not Gonna Take It” and “Dazed and Confused,” leaving his bluesman’s soul mostly dormant until disc two, when Little Milton steps up and sets the proceedings on keel. The band then delivers wailing versions of “My Dog and Me” and “The Blues is Alright” before finishing the side with then-Black Crowes guitarist Audley Freed and interminably long solos. Disc three starts with an unexceptional cover of “Helter Skelter” and a Crowes tune, “Sometimes Salvation,” that finally redeems itself, yet still underscores Gov’t Mule’s biggest shortcoming: In most cases, the band doesn’t enhance their covers enough to justify performing them (the soaring “I Shall Be Released” is a notable exception). If you can’t make it your own, it’s rarely worth doing except as an easy crowd-pleaser. And if you have to rely on easy crowd-pleasers, you’re missing whatever it is you need to dazzle ‘em on your own.—Lynne Margolis
Buy if you like: Little Milton, the Black Crowes

Buckcherry, “All Night Long” (Eleven Seven Music)
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Buckcherry parties like it’s 1989 on “All Night Long,” starting with the swaggering title tune, a song that revisits the heyday of L.A. glam rock. It’s followed by the thundering “It’s A Party,” which is a little bit Aerosmith; “Recovery,” which recalls Motley Crue; and “Liberty,” which dives into Guns N’ Roses territory, complete with Josh Todd vocals that draw on Axl Rose’s whine. Just to make sure all the ‘80s rock cliches are in place, “These Things” and “I Want You” come close to power ballad status, albeit a little more revved-up than standard for the formula. And if you get the two-disc package, the second six-song disc is all acoustic, exactly what Guns N’ Roses did a couple decades ago.  In other words, there’s nothing close to new on “All Night Long,” only competent recycling of songs that had their day decades ago. — L. Kent Wolgamott
Buy if you like: Motley Crue, Aerosmith.

Esperanza Spalding: “Chamber Music Society” (Heads Up)
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Esperanza Spalding is an amazing vocalist, bassist and songwriter. She’s stunning and charming, and a joy to watch live. She’s exactly the kind of young talent that gives jazz a secure future. As for her own, it would seem limitless. Which is why it seems odd that she would choose to follow her American debut, “Esperanza,” with an album that concentrates so heavily on scatting, it takes a while to truly connect. That happens with “Apple Blossom,” a sublime duet with Milton Nascimento. “Winter Sun” also contains lovely lyrics (as well as Leo Genovese’s marvelous piano work). As strong a wordsmith as she is, Spalding should incorporate more of them into her work—regardless of whether she sings them in English, Portuguese or other languages she’s been known to incorporate. The multi-lingual vocal interplay with Gretchen Parlato — with Spalding’s bass weaving elegantly between their notes — on “Inútil Paisagem,” is thoroughly charming. More of this, please. — Lynne Margolis
Buy if you like: Nancy Wilson, Flora Purim

Duke Robillard: “Passport To The Blues” (Stony Plain)
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The veteran guitarist and former leader of Roomful Of Blues has covered plenty of roots music ground over his long career. He’s shown he is well versed in soul, R&B and even jazz. But Robillard is at his best when he returns to the foundation of virtually all of his music — the blues. And “Passport To The Blues” is one of the better examples of Robillard’s music because aside from a stirring cover of Tom Waits’ “Make It Rain,” the CD focuses entirely on his own blues songwriting. And Robillard’s songwriting chops are as strong as ever. He hits the mark with nearly every song, with a few highlights including the punchy “Workin’ Hard For My Uncle,” the gritty and funky “Blues Train” and the swinging and sassy “Girl Let Me Tell Ya.” The added bonus is that “Passport To The Blues” is also strong lyrically as well. On a few songs, Robillard offers his take on the economic struggles of today’s working man, and on “Hong Kong Suit,” he shares some wisdom on a life lived well and its inevitable final curtain call. From the sound of “Passport To The Blues,” there’s still plenty of life left in Robillard, who remains one of the leading talents in blues. — Alan Sculley
Buy if you like: Roomful Of Blues, T-Bone Walker

Darker My Love: “Alive As You Are: (Dangerbird)
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With a sound that easily moves between laid back country-accented tracks like “Backseat” and “Rain Party” and terse rockers such as “18th Street Shuffle” (complete with organ work that would make the Doors proud), “Maple Day Getaway” and “A Lovely Game,” Darker My Love should appeal to fans that have discovered Blitzen Trapper. Only on “Alive As You Are,” Darker My Love has a sound that’s tighter, a bit punchier and lacks the feels-like-it-could-fly-apart-at-any-moment vibe that permeates much of the latter band’s music. What’s more, the songwriting on “Alive As You Are” is arguably even stronger than that of the much-buzzed Blitzen Trapper. This CD makes it abundantly clear that Darker My Love knows how to craft compelling melodies, be it on the winsome country-ish ballad “Cry On Me Woman,” the chiming pop-rocker “Split Minute” or the shuffling rocker “Dear Author.” It’s enough to put Darker My Love squarely in the conversation of any of the current alt-leaning buzz bands.
— Alan Sculley
Buy if you like: Blitzen Trapper, the Grateful Dead