Elvis Presley/Carl Perkins/ Jerry Lee Lewis/Johnny Cash
The Complete Million Dollar Quartet (Sun/Sony BMG)
In case you didn’t already know, Million Dollar Quartet is the product of one fateful day in December, 1956, when Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash crashed a Carl Perkins recording session and the tape captured Sun’s greatest stars leafing through gospel hymnals, bluegrass ballads and Christmas carols, and even trying their hand at early rock ’n’ roll classics like Little Richard’s “Rip It Up.” Previously a widely distributed bootleg, the official version of this session contains no edits, and listening to it unfold is just priceless. It’s a great historical document of the meeting of the forefathers of rock, and the between-song chatter is amazing, but beyond all that, this thing just plain rocks. 9/10 (Johnson Cummins)

Dead Moon
Echoes of the Past (Sub Pop/Outside)
For longtime collectors of the rarer-than-hen’s-teeth Dead Moon releases, this will come as the mother lode, and for the rest of us, Echoes of the Past provides the perfect starting point. This exhaustive, 49-track compilation culled from their 20-year career is just chock full of garage-psych gems sure to bend some ears outside of the vinyl-collecting nerd set. When singer Jeff Wood howls, “I’ve been screaming at the top of my lungs since 1965” on the Stooges-ish, autobiographical “Poor Born,” you have to get down on your knees and worship. Fans of Elevator or any of Rick White’s many other lo-fi psych sides best check their roots here. 8.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)

Jet
Shine On (Atlantic/Warner)
I could come up with funny plane puns about these soulless Aussie rockers and their wretched album, but nothing could be more insulting than getting a glowing review from Terry and Ted at CHOM. For humour’s sake, let’s forget that this Oasis-wannabe album is a piece of shit, but what on Earth happened with the production? Producer Dave Sardy removed the layer of artificial sheen of their debut, and now there’s a lo-fi, muddy tinge to all the tracks. Did he honestly think he could give a band that resorts to plagiarizing lines from beer commercials (“Bring It On Back”) any sort of soul? 0.5/10 (Erik Leijon)

Sparklehorse
Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain (Captiol/EMI)
If indie rock and country were neighbouring states, this album would capture the mood of a leisurely stroll along their shared border, with a psychedelic landscape gently undulating in the distance. This is Sparklehorse’s first album in five years, a lovely and surprisingly laid-back affair considering the presence of producers Dangermouse and Dave Fridmann, who subtly bring their respective programming and fuzz-infusing skills to the table. Though marred by blandness and a misuse of guest talent—Tom Waits, for example, makes a negligible piano cameo—the depth and prettiness of Sparklehorse’s sound provide adequate distraction from the record’s flaws. 7.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

Charlotte Gainsbourg
5:55 (Because/Warner)
The daughter of sleazy ol’ Serge digresses from her film career and releases her first full-length music album since pops masterminded her debut 20 years ago. With lyrics care of Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker and the Divine Comedy’s Neil Hannon, Nigel Godrich (Radiohead) at the board and Air as her composers/back-up band (with a pair of drum assists by Tony Allen!), she’s got the team to ace the A-C market. Problem is, at the core is her unremarkable voice, little evolved beyond the kitten-whisper schtick familiar from her creepy duets with daddy when she was a teen. 6/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

Fucked Up
Hidden World (Jade Tree)
Toronto’s blowing up on the punk rock front. Bands like Career Suicide and Brutal Knights add much-needed vitality to the genre, but this two-disc set from Fucked Up leads the charge. These miscreants reach epic proportions, and offer lyrics that give the songs added depth without draining off the piss and vinegar. Fucked Up aren’t reinventing the wheel here, though the string section and delayed-guitar interludes indicate that this is hardly your garden-variety punk rock. Perfectly mixing Poison Idea vocals, Hot Snakes innovation and Rocket From the Crypt pop sensibility, Fucked Up’s Hidden World is easily the punk rock release of 2006. 9/10 (Johnson Cummins)

Evanescence
The Open Door (Wind-Up/Sony BMG)
The second album from Evanescence marks the return of their paint-by-numbers whine-metal with sure-fire start/stop dramatics and chugging, syncopated guitars, dragging the late ’90s kicking and screaming into ’06 with sampled breakbeats. Fans won’t be disappointed, as nothing much has changed despite the departure of founding guitartist Ben Moody and recent departure of bassist William Boyd. The obligatory piano ballad is here in “Call Me When You’re Sober,” and for fans of Amy Lee’s voice, she belts them out like a nu-metal Celine Dion. Love it or hate it, this is gonna make a lot of money. 6/10 (Lateef Martin)

Mini
Audio Hygiene (NRG Komrads)
As a DJ, Mini spins dark and spiky electro and gritty, four-eyed techno, styles that converge on her debut album as a producer. More surprising than the twitchy, fuzzy dancefloor tracks, among them collaborations with French goth-rock legends Trisomie 21, are the melancholy melodies and tender lyrics of songs like “Walking” and “Cycle.” Butta Beats and members of Lesbians on Ecstasy lend their vocals to a track each, while Mini lays some standard electro deadpan on the rest. But, true to her name, Mini keeps the vocals minimal, letting the sharp beats and clever sounds play the starring roles. 7.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter) CD launch at Parking tonight, Thurs., Oct. 12, 10 p.m.

Lloyd Banks
Rotten Apple (G-Unit/Universal)
Lloyd Banks’s sophomore effort is a surprising retreat from the standard G-Unit fare. Rotten Apple sounds like an above-average mixtape—the arrangements feature little more than a looped drum and a keyboard sample, nearly every song has a guest rapper or two, and the rapping flows loosely. The obvious mass-market singles are absent as well, but that could just be Banks and 50 Cent bereft of ideas. “Hands Up” is the only classic G-Unit track, “Make a Move” packs a rocking drum beat and “Playboy” wins with modest production. Perfectly suited for an iPod mix, the album loses steam near the end. 6.5/10 (Erik Leijon)

Busy Signal
Step Out (Greensleeves)
“Don’t say nothing bad about the Killa!” So spits Busy Signal on the huge “Step Out.” The guy doesn’t even need to big up Bounty Killer—his gruff yet weirdly operatic style demonstrates Bounty’s tremendous influence. And it’s a good thing. Step Out is a solid dancehall record, with requisite love duets, cinematic flourishes, liberal use of vocoder and some serious energy. Though there’s only one Killer, on “Do the Maths,” Busy Signal demonstrates that he can keep up with his idol. And on “That Bad,” he spouts lyrics from all sorts of people, from Sean Paul and Sizzla to, strangely, the Fugees. Busy Signal is figuring out where he fits. In the ultra-competitive dancehall, he might be able to sneak in. 8/10 (Erin MacLeod)

Sleepy Brown
Mr. Brown (Virgin/EMI)
Yeah, you know Sleepy, the chrome-domed, crooning Casanova sweetening up those Outkast tracks. As part of Organized Noize, he produced their early records, in fact, and Big Boi returns the favour in part on this overdue debut. No booming bangers here, not even “Margarita” with Pharrell and Big Boi, because that’s not what Sleepy does. “I’m Soul,” announces the kickoff track, and damned if he isn’t—smooth, assured and devastatingly cool, Brown delivers honey sweetness with champagne sparkle, end to end, at his own unhurried pace. 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

Cassie
self-titled (Warner)
Cherish
Unappreciated (EMI)
Debuts by model-turned-singer Cassie and the Atlanta-based sister quartet Cherish got off to quick starts thanks to catchy lead singles, the electro-funk “Me & U” and the snap-dance anthem “Do It to It,” respectively. Whether either of these acts has the stuff to go the distance is another story. Cassie’s debut single and the follow-up, “Long Way 2 Go,” exhibit the minimalist groove that producer Ryan Leslie uses to frame Cassie’s slight vocals throughout this album, making for an enjoyable, albeit mostly forgettable listen. Meanwhile, Cherish exhibit strong vocal abilities on an uneven set where a handful of songs, including the title track and the high-energy party jam “Taken,” stand head and shoulders above the rest. Nevertheless, while Cassie’s debut gets points for consistency, Cherish seem to have more potential beyond their debut. Cassie 7.5/10, Cherish 7/10 (Gerard Dee)

Jed Levy
Mood Ellington (Steeplechase)
Hod O’Brien
Live at Blues Alley First Set (Reservoir)
Hod O’Brien
Live at Blues Alley Second Set (Reservoir)
Tenorman Levy comes up with one of the greatest Ellington CDs in recent memory, including compositions like “Neo Hip Hot Cool Kiddies Community” from Duke’s suite “The River‚” and “Circle of Fourths,” inspired by the Bard. It’s also a great introduction to pianist Bill Mays. Any material by O’Brien, another unsung pianist, is always welcome, and these two sets from a gig in Washington in 2004 do not disappoint. Hod is joined by Ray Drummond and Kenny Washington on 15 tracks including more Ellingtonia, “Snibor,” “In a Sentimental Mood” and “Do Nothing” segueing into “A Train,” as well as music by Sonny Rollins, Randy Weston, Joe Zawinul, Freddie Redd and Bob Dorough. If you love bebop piano, you’ll want these and a third, still in the production stage. All 10/10 (Len Dobbin)

Mini CD Reviews

Keith Jarrett The Carnegie Hall Concert (ECM/Universal) Two CDs of solo improvisation from a concert last September. It’s all here, including long stretches of applause. 10 (LD)

Gregory Isaacs The Past, the Present (Scorcher) Everyone knows Gregory Isaacs today is, well—I’ll be kind and say he’s just not as good as when this record of tunes on ’80s digital riddms was recorded. 8 (EM)

Kasabian Empire (RCA/Sony BMG) This relentless glam rock bombardment, complete with strings, horns and huge-ass riffs, reduces their debut album to rubble. 8 (LC)

Various Back to the Bus: Babyshambles (DMC/Fusion III) Doherty and co. compile mod, punk and Britpop classics (plus a couple cool new nuggets), and make cameos with an acoustic exclusive and a moronic interview. 8 (LC)

Four Tet Remixes (Domino/Outside) One two discs, the multifaceted Keiran Hebden gives (Radiohead, Pole, Madvillain) as good as he gets (Sa Ra, Manitoba, Battles). 7.5 (RB)

Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 Ole Tarantula (Yep Roc/Outside) This ex-Soft Boy’s open letter to deceased New York Doll Arthur Kane, on “N.Y. Doll,” is guaranteed to put a lump in your throat. 7 (JC)

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