Change of Heart Steelteeth (Virgin)
The Herbalizer Blow Your Headphones (Ninja Tune)Instrumental hip hop? British people are starting to put rappers on disc, and Herbalizer's Ollie Teeba and Jake Wherry do it well, even if they do it better when they leave rappers alone and go full-on screwy jazz on tracks like "Mr. Chombee Has the Flaw" and "Ginger Jumps the Fence." More chunky than intricate, more grooved than groundbreaking. Solid nouveau British homeboy stuff for skinny white kids behind turntables. 7.5/10 (Mireille Silcott) Robert Johnson and Punchdrunks Feels Like Buzz Aldrin (Bird Nest Records)This instrumental surf combo from Sweden has the clang of The Sonics, the brashness of Link Wray and the primal urgency of The Cramps. Captured in the unapologetic sounds of mono, Robert Johnson and his swingin' Swedes prefer their surfing in rockier waters and thankfully never quite reach the safety of the beach. 8.5/10 (Johnson Cummins) Helmet Aftertaste (Interscope/Universal)
Perhaps the most telling title of the year so far, because really, who wants to hear a wishy-mouthwash Helmet? If leader Page Hamilton is trying to age gracefully, I suggest he follow his much-spouted jazz muse rather than trying to "refine" Black Sabbath any further. When you call your band Helmet, you're just not allowed to soften it up. 6/10 (Chris Yurkiw)
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Turning their backs on college rock cred, Change of Heart gaze longingly on the ridiculous grandeur of arena rock. They can't shake their roots, however: behind their April Whining and Triumph-ant ranting is a layer of queasy, menacing electronica. This is what Six Finger Satellite might have been, had they actually gotten laid in high school. 7/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)