Disc of the week

Groove Attic
Like a Tree (independent)
The debut album by local band Groove Attic is a refreshing introduction that offers complex yet inviting instrumentation, mixed with smooth and well-placed vocals by Kurt Skjaevestad. The chemistry within the band is evident, producing irresistible grooves and excellent guitar solos by Jordan Peters. A timeless journey into jazz-rock and a very promising first step for this band. 9/10 Trial Track: “Prove Me Wrong” (Morgan Steiker)

Health
Get Color (Lovepump United)
Striking out like a modern-day Jesus and Mary Chain, or a somewhat friendlier Sightings, this L.A. quartet hit all the highs here. This could be just another beat-injected electro-noise record if not for the band’s flirtations with traditional pop structure and singer Jake’s Duzsik’s detached vocal delivery burrowing deep into the frontal lobes. This is progressive dance music that is guaranteed to get even the noise Nazis’ toes a-tappin.’ 7.5/10 Trial Track: “We Are Water” (Johnson Cummins) With Pictureplane, Black Feelings at la Sala Rossa, Sun., Sept. 20, 8:30 p.m., $15

Blk Jks
After Robots (Secretly Canadian)
Strive as they might to achieve a Brooklyn loft sound, these kids from Soweto, South Africa don’t shake off their roots. At too many points, After Robots descends into jazz-rock convolution and proggy pomp, but when Afro-beat residue meets rising avant-rock on “Molalatladi” with Hypnotic Brass Ensemble assisting, or the band echoes TV on the Radio on “Lakeside,” they border on breathtaking. 7.5/10 Trial Track: “Molalatladi” (Rupert Bottenberg)

A Storm of Light
Forgive Us Our Trespasses (Neurot)
Ex-Red Sparowes and Neurosis member Josh Graham makes good on this follow-up to S.O.L.’s last effort, And We Wept the Black Ocean. Graham’s husky baritone still recalls Michael Gira’s later days, but this time A Storm of Light climb a couple of extra rungs, adding a new sense of urgency to their dense sound. Fans of epic, sorrowful, cataclysmic and panoramic metal, take note. 8.5/10 Trial Track: “Tempest” (Johnson Cummins)

The Fast Romantics
self-titled (independent)
Packaged in playfully subversive retro kiddie art, the debut LP by this Calgary quartet is an intoxicating interweaving of nearly every style of pop, rock and roots music under the sun. There are moments when overstressed vocals threaten to derail an ambitious and exciting ride, but there’s enough contrasting subtlety, gripping songcraft and theatrical might to keep things on track.
7/10 Trial Track: “Stop Me” (Lorraine Carpenter) At l’Absynthe tonight, Thurs., Sept. 17

Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson
Break Up (Atco/Warner)
Despite dismal reactions to her ill-advised Tom Waits tribute album, the starlet Johansson returns to record but leaves the lion’s share of the work to collaborator Yorn. The latter generates a mulch of moody, MOR roots rock with just enough flair and filigree to avoid flatlining entirely. Johansson, for her part, simply sings—and man, her voice is just weird, some kinda Betty Boop-ish thing. 4/10 Trial Track: “Wear and Tear” (Rupert Bottenberg)

Taken by Trees
East of Eden (Rough Trade)
Urdu vocal cameos, Eastern percussion, a quasi-hijab. You guessed it, this sophomore LP by Victoria Bergsman, ex-singer for Swedish pop/rock band the Concretes, is the result of a Pakistani odyssey. Cultural appropriation aside, the record is a thoughtful, often beautiful love letter to Lahore, with a P.S. to Animal Collective, whose Noah Lennox sings back-up, and whose song “My Girls” is covered (as “My Boys”). 7.5/10 Trial Track: “Day by Day” (Lorraine Carpenter)

My Favorite Robot
We Come in Pieces (My Favorite Robot)
A pared-down breed of electrotech, these locals’ debut, eight-track album is at times, as on “Wakinda Park,” sleazy and subdued, while at others somewhat quirky and perky, as on “Ask Around.” The synth licks are dark and spacey, and the bass low and growling, while the tracks feature few channels and unfold gradually, evoking an unhurried, somewhat sinister mood. 8/10 Trial Track: “Modest Goddess” (Jack Oatmon)

The Castanets
Texas Rose, the Thaw & the Beasts (Asthmatic Kitty)
The electronic and folk sides of the Castanets’ Raymond Raposa swing like a pendulum. One minute he’s wading through a swamp of sparse electronic mood music, the next he’s noodling on his acoustic guitar and unleashing his inner Dylan. At no point do his diverse influences mesh together, so instead the listener jumps between unstructured jazzy moments—some dazzling, some dismaying. 6/10 Trial Track: “Dance, Dance” (Erik Leijon)

The Johnstones
Can’t Be Trusted (Stomp/Warner)
With multiple singers and unpredictable breakdowns, the communal spontaneity of Can’t Be Trusted is a pinch of Sugarhill Gang with a ska backbeat. It’s not hip hop per se, but what’s more old school than passing the mic around, delivering verses over relatively static looping beats (in this case buoyant horns and keys)? Not hip hop, but frosh-hop. 5.5/10 Trial Track: “Life in the Flow” (Erik Leijon) CD Launch at Underworld, Fri., Sept. 18, 8 p.m., $15, all ages

Dubmatique
Trait d’Union (Productions Dub)
This latest effort by Quebec’s most seasoned rap duo is their first since 2001. A change of tone shows maturity and introspection throughout the album. The intro, “J’assume,” is heartfelt and soulful self-reflection, while “Changer le monde” tackles the realities of today with pragmatism. “Hymne au Quebec” offers a regional anthem while other tracks peppered throughout balance the album with a lighter vibe. 7/10 Trial Track: “Hymne au Quebec” (Morgan Steiker)

Trey Songz
Ready (Atlantic/Warner)
Songz’s third set is a pedestrian offering full of the usual sex come on’s that dominate generic R&B. Neither his voice nor the production make this very interesting, as tracks like “I Invented Sex” just fall flat. But songs like the playful “LOL :) ” and the edgy “Yo Side of the Bed” prove that Songz can be a lot better than this. 6/10 Trial Track: “LOL :)” (Gerard Dee)

Tanya Stephens
A Collection of Hits (VP)
Telling stories about relationships (playing the other woman in “It’s a Pity”), sex (making the case for female satisfaction in “You Nah Ready Fi Dis Yet”), society (check the pointed commentary in “The Other Cheek”), you name it, Tanya Stephens can do it all. Clever, witty, insightful, entertaining, this record collects tunes from one of the best artists Jamaica has ever produced. 10/10 Trial Track: “These Streets” (Erin MacLeod)

MINI CD REVIEWS

Shannon Stephens The Breadwinner (Asthmatic Kitty) The solo debut by this Sufjan Stevens/Will Oldham associate and skilled singer-songwriter is simple yet sophisticated, morose yet hopeful. 7 (LC)

Simon Finn Rats Laugh Mice Sing (10 to 1) New fans of U.K. psych-folk should be dazzled by this recent slab from one of the unsung originators. 7 (JC) At Casa Del Popolo, Sat., Sept. 19, 9 p.m., $12

Nelly Furtado Mi Plan (Universal Latino) Following her successful Americanization, via Timbaland, Nelly sets her sights further south with a record en Espagnol. 6 (LC)

Bifrost Arts “Come O Spirit!”: Anthology of Hymns and Spiritual Songs Vol. 1 (Great Comfort) Assorted hipsters, incl. Sufjan Stevens and Damien Jurado, pipe up for Jesus. The results are flat, wimpy and entirely uninspiring. 3 (RB)

Uncle Kracker Happy Hour (Top Dog/Atlantic/Warner) The NASCAR Jason Mraz. 1 (EL)

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