The Hylozoists
La fin du monde (Boompa/EMI)
The second CD by this Halifax-cum-Hogtown mega-group (the line-up on the CD boasts 19 names) confirms them as the finest chamber-pop outfit in our fair country. Comparisons to the High Llamas are inevitable, given all the shiny brass, chiming vibraphones and multi-instrumentalist Paul Aucoin at the helm, filling the Sean O’Hagan role. That said, the Hylozoists do have their own thing going on, moody, meaty and full of frills and filigree. With a roster boasting Owen “Final Fantasy” Pallett, Jason Tait of the Weakerthans and cats from Cuff the Duke, the Sadies, Deadly Snakes and of course that other tune-horde from T-dot, Broken Social Scene, you know to expect some masterful musical collectivism here. La fin du monde is due out June 20, but in the meantime, catch the band’s Suoni-fest appearance—taking sheer logistics into account, it’s not like they’ll be here every other week! 9/10 (Rupert Bottenberg) With Bardo Pond and Kohoutek at la Sala Rossa, Sat., June 10, 9 p.m., $12

John Kastner
Have You Seen Lucky (Boss Tuneage)
For those of us who’ve been following John Kastner’s lengthy music career, his debut solo effort, Have You Seen Lucky, turns out to be a bona fide treat. Kastner long ago proved he could work a melody like a motherfucker, his work with the Doughboys, Asexuals and more recently, All Systems Go, all bearing testimony to his considerable songwriting skills, but damn, fans (and, full disclosure, friends) might well come to consider this solo effort as the man’s great masterwork. Equal parts ballad-y and rockin’, there’s nary a bad track to be found here. Well worth checking out. 8.5/10 (Chris Barry)

AFI
Decemberunderground (Interscope/Universal)
The critics have never been kind to these femme-y goth punx, and unfortunately I can’t be the first. These pouty sad sacks hit new lows on this one, with clunkers like “Kill Caustic” and other misfires, with their predictable moves of discordant guitar, screamo vocals and verses lead up to—you guessed it—giant sugarcoated choruses. There are hits for the high-schoolers galore here, including the NIN-meets-Green Day radio fodder “Miss Murder,” but by stacking the record with potential singles, it gets as boring as, well, the current state of radio. Crusty critics like myself are still going to hate it, and mall punks are going to love it—choose your poison carefully. 5/10 (Johnson Cummins) With Dillinger Escape Plan, Nightmare of You at le Medley, Tues., June 13, 8 p.m., $25

Home
Sexteen (Brah/Jagjaguwar)
The Spice Girls and the Pussycat Dolls won’t tell us what we really really want, or what Will.I.am keeps looking at, but on their 16th album Sexteen, Home have the answers: “Fucking” and “Juicy Ass.” Those are two songs from their self-described concept album about sex, but even more appealing than their frank lyrics is their indie pop big-band sound. With fat, busy arrangements and a flair for clean and simple melodies, the band seems to have planted a flag on the Flaming Lips’ playing field, though their casual eclecticism takes them in different directions—back to early ’90s indie rock, and way back to funk, but what’s a sex record without a little funk? 7.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

Angels & Airwaves
We Don’t Need to Whisper (Geffen/Universal)
Tom DeLonge’s downtime detour doesn’t sound too different from his main gig, Blink 182. An older, wiser Blink 182. An older, wiser Blink 182 with a bald spot, bad back and beige socks, a mortgage, a minivan and a reasonable bedtime. Like the flaccid, faux-fervent ’80s FM-radio “rock” it imitates, with mawkish bathos and overcooked production tricks recalling post-jumping-of-shark Pink Floyd and U2, this shit doesn’t rock, it just sorta rolls along towards irrelevance. 3/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

Mission of Burma
The Obliterati (Matador/Select)
MOB’s performance at Pop Montreal two years ago is still dancing in my head. Despite a 15-year hiatus, these legends can still teach them young ’uns a thing or two. As near-genius as the classics like VS. and The Horrible Truth About Burma are, the band hardly rests on its laurels and still proves itself full of piss and vinegar. Roger Miller is stellar on “Spider’s Web,” Clint Conley is punk as fuck on “Good, Not Great” and Peter Prescott changes gears nicely on “Period.” The best part is the accompanying live DVD that shows them just killing on the hits like “That’s When I Reach for My Revolver.” Just fucking great. 9/10 (Johnson Cummins)

Amy Millan
Honey From the Tombs (Arts and Crafts)
Less ancient than mummy honey, and a little bitterer than the sticky stuff, this collection of country-laced ditties was written before Millan joined Stars in 2000. The album was recorded sporadically, with collaborators like Ian Blurton, bluegrass band Crazy Strings and Millan’s Broken Social Scene cohorts. Her velvety voice is the star of the show, leading listeners through tales of broken hearts and whiskey benders, with a pale but pretty acoustic backdrop. But unconventional country sounds (keys, trumpet, sleazy electric riffs) bring some of the best tunes to life. 8/10 (Lorraine Carpenter) With FemBots at Cabaret tonight, Thurs., June 8, 9 p.m., $13

The Aggrolites
self-titled (Hellcat/FAB)
Formed as a short-term pick-up band for some dates with Derrick Morgan, this California quintet (featuring the drummer from Hepcat!) figured they had a good thing going, so why not stick with it? Singer Jesse Wagner’s gravel-paved pipes hold their own amid the structurally sound rock steady grooves and Roger Rivas’s luminous organ work, which recalls Jamaica’s Jackie Mittoo in its charming rink-readiness. Despite the Morgan hook-up, and subsequent sets with Phyllis Dillon, the Aggrolites don’t deal their retro-reggae straight, instead flavouring it with Chicano funk-rock, boogaloo and grinding Stax soul. Solid! 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg) With the Aquabats and Whole Wheat Bread at le National, Wed., June 14, 8 p.m., $15, all ages

Sunz of Man
The Old Testament (Green Streets)
Did you know that God created the Sunz of Man, raising these disciples of Armageddon through eternal light to become soldiers of darkness against the wicked forces of evil? Well, if you’re not familiar with hip hop’s biblical prophets Hell Razah, Prodigal Sunn, 60 Second Assassin and the awesome Killah Priest, then take this opportunity to explore the return of the first Wu-Tang spin-off group. Taking it right back to ’94, verses, scriptures and parables intact, Sunz of Man embody the original Wu spirit, rapping grimy and passionate with convoluted religious imagery taken from Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Rastafarianism and the streets. RZA and Raekwon join in for a few joints on this familiar but lukewarm addition to the books of the Bible as we know them. 7/10 (Scott C)

7D
The Sev Signal (Lion Arts/RISE)
In this latest call-out to lazy, copycat producers across the city, 7D gets down to business representing his Lion Arts sound with a series of remixes featuring a slew of well-known hip hop stars and songs. Kardinal Offishall’s “Belly Dancer” gets the full-blown treatment, almost outshining the original production, while Quasimoto’s “The Broad Factor” gets flipped with Johnny Guitar Watson for maximum effect. Standout tracks include Dilla and Phat Kat on the eight-bit gem “Game Over,” and the uptempo bounce of his Busta Rhymes “Dangerous” remix. Definitely a Montreal producer to watch in the future. 8/10 (Scott C)

Gladys Knight & the Pips
Gold (Universal)
The satisfyingly comprehensive Gold series finally puts soul superstar Gladys Knight in the spotlight, spanning 30 years of the venerable singer’s career both with the Pips and solo. This two-disc remastered set delivers everything on the Knight most-wanted list—“Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye),” “Midnight Train to Georgia,” “Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me”—as well as lesser known gems like “Friendship Train” and the original version of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.” The group’s ’80s work is represented by superior jams like “Save the Overtime (for Me)” and “Love Overboard.” Solid gold. 8.5/10 (Gerard Dee)

Roberto López Project
Qué Pasa? (Curura)
What’s happening, the title asks, and the answer here is, what isn’t? With a long list of collaborators, including rapper Daniel Russo Garrido, sax-man Dave Turner and timbale titan Joe Armando, and a rundown of Afro-Latin styles explored that takes in salsa, son, descarga, cumbia, neo-boogaloo, jazz and funk (the good kind), this Montreal-based exercise might well have taken too much on its plate. It’s to the credit of bandleader López, who was involved in pretty much every facet of making this CD and handles at least a dozen instruments, that it not only holds together in a tight and tasteful manner, but that each distinct tune glitters with clarity, confidence and catchiness. 8/10 (Rupert Bottenberg) At les FrancoFolies’ Monde Multiculturel Hydro-Québec stage, Parc culturel Hydro-Québec (Ste-Catherine and Clark), Mon., June 12, 7 p.m. and 10 p.m., free

Dave Douglas
Meaning and Mystery (Greenleaf)
Donny McCaslin
Give and Go (Criss Cross)
Saxophonist McCaslin, who’s common to both these releases, is finally getting the recognition he deserves. He’s joined by John Swana, Steve Cardenas, Scott Colley and Gene Jackson on his eight-track release, one that consists of Monk and Sadik Hakim’s “Eronel,” and five of Donny’s originals. Douglas, one of today’s premier trumpeters and composers, heads up another wonderful quintet with McCaslin, Uri Caine, James Genus and Clarence Penn. All nine tracks are the leader’s compositions—I’d suggest “The Sheik of Things to Come” as a good introduction to this one. Both 9.5/10 (Len Dobbin)

Mini CD Reviews

Alan Broadbent ’Round Midnight (Artistry Music) Pianist Broadbent makes beautiful music—that he’s also a sought after arranger adds to the way he approaches each piece of music. 9 (LD)

El Perro del Mar self-titled (Memphis Industries/Fusion III) For every Abba, Sweden produces an El Perro del Mar, who turns the national popcraft into a siren call—the beauty lures you in, the melancholy slowly destroys you. 8.5 (LC)

Etran Finatawa Introducing… (World Music Network/Fusion III) Gritty, bluesy trance jams from the Sahara, not unlike Robert Plant’s darlings Tinariwen in their sunbleached Afro-Arab-rock formulation. 8 (RB)

Ladyhawk self-titled (Jagjaguwar) Damn, Vancouver is on fire right now. Ladyhawk play near-perfect pop, perfectly. 8 (JC)

Near the Parenthesis Go Out and See (Music Made by People) Lush, genteel electronic compositions ebb and flow with feeling. Anti-depressants, away! 7.5 (LC)

Up, Bustle & Out City Breakers 18 Frames per Second (Groove Attack/Fusion III) A perplexing attempt at dubbed-out breaks, ragga, downtempo and other mind-numbing foolishness. 5 (SC)

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