Queens of the Stone Age Songs for the Deaf (Interscope/Universal)
The sticker on the front of this sucker quotes a U.K. rag saying that “Queens of the Stone Age are the best living rock band” and damn if these limeys aren’t spot on for once. Foo Fighter Dave Grohl is drumming on all tracks and is splendid as usual, but it’s former Screaming Tree Mark Lanegan who contributes the occasional vocal that really sends this over the edge. They dust off the Desert Session tune “You Think I Ain’t Worth a Dollar But I Feel Like a Millionaire” but this time around it has even more venom and bite. Right after that it slams into the single of the year “No One Knows” and then there’s no looking back. Josh Homme plays his pop card with his vocal melodies, but this is relentless rock peppered with a heaping amount of psychedelia. This record is so good it’s just plain stupid. 9.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)

Coldplay A Rush of Blood to the Head (EMI)
From the pounding drone of “Politik” (recalling Blur’s “Sing”) to the textured tenderness of “Amsterdam,” Coldplay effortlessly balance the beautiful delicacy of Parachutes with a fresh, sometimes raucous urgency. While songs like “In My Place” closely resemble the first album’s folk/Britpop-informed formula, a somewhat darker, more uptempo approach dominates (tellingly, Echo and the Bunnymen’s Ian McCulloch played mentor here). Surpassing the oft-compared-to Travis on all fronts (again), Chris Martin’s exquisite voice and piano, Jonny Buckland’s made-to-order guitar and Ken Nelson’s seamless production make this one for the books. 9/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

Mudhoney Since We Became Translucent (Sub Pop/Outside)
Well, Mudhoney (Seattle’s finest, yet overlooked, grunge band) are back and they have dusted off the fuzzboxes again, ditched their fascination with Billy Childish and gone back to their Blue Cheer/Stoogeisms. Previous bombs like My Brother the Cow and Piece of Cake are forgiven with the opening nine-minute opus “Baby, Can You Dig the Light.” Check out the Saints references in “Where the Flavor Is” or the dirty garage of “Dyin’ for It”—this is prime Mudhoney, fer Crissakes. They’re back and they’re back on top, so pick this up and hear them again for the first time. 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

Schneider TM Zoomer (Mute/Fusion III)
Glitchno, pop, hip hop and a generous slice of Euro cheese happily unite on this sophomore disc by remixer and solo craftsman Schneider TM, aka Dirk Dresselhaus, the man who twisted the Smiths last year on “The Light 3000.” Produced in part by Hamburg’s reggae/hip hop authority Mathias Arfman, and featuring vocals by Puppetmastaz’s Max Turner on “Turn On,” this richly atmospheric treat brings in smooth vocals, goofy vocoders, sneaky beats and heaps of melodic basslines and electro-isms. Groovy, sweet, smart, and heavy when it wants to be—as on the fuzzed-up freakout “999”—Zoomer could well be the low-key crossover hit of the fall. 9/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

Jazzyfatnastees The Tortoise and the Hare (Ryko/Outside)
Some of you may remember the Jazzyfatnastees as the backup singers who used to tour with the Roots, and the ladies responsible for the overlooked LP The Once and Future from 1999. Tracey Moore and Mercedes Martinez can sing all right, and although The Tortoise and the Hare may lack focus and intensity, their broad view of what popular black music is, and can be, is encouraging. Wandering into pop, soul, rock, jazz, and Latin music all in one breath is an obvious undertaking, and these two have made it clear that they have no desire to get pigeonholed. For this next move, they called in the production talents of longtime Roots collaborator Scott Storch, as well as Mercedes’s brother J. Swift from the Pharcyde. Overall, the 10 tracks offered here reveal the souls of two fresh talents that we’ll be hearing from again very soon. 7.5/10 (Scott C)

Battery Operated Chases Through Non-Place (Cocosolidciti/Triage)
Originally released as a single disc on Mixer Records two years ago, local-ish label (based in Montreal, Paris and Manchester) Cocosolidciti has recently re-released Chases as a double disc, divided between audio and video. The concept is simple: get a DAT and DV camera, go somewhere specific, record the sights and sounds, take it home, put it on your computer, and twist the fuck out of it. A great audio-visual adventure into digital manipulation, avant-garde electronics and noise (if you can get your head around the artspeak liner notes, it’s actually quite an interesting read). With more processing than a Kraft singles factory, this release should make most laptop fanatics blow their firewire. 8/10 (Raf Katigbak)

Mercan Dede Secret Tribe Nar (Doublemoon)
The alter ego of familiar local trance DJ Arkin Allin returns with a follow-up, at once more focused and expansive, to last year’s Seyahatname. Under the Dede guise, he digs into his Turkish background, particularly his studies in Sufi mysticism. Thus, the Secret Tribe is about the theory of Sufism, honouring and nourishing its traditions, whereas the trance sets are about practical application for the masses. Dede’s again enlisted our own Bucket Boy, Scott Russell (hence the strong rhythmic element), rogue Canadian violinist Hugh Marsh and a host of Turkish talent. Nar establishes simple, circular motifs in a Middle Eastern vein, carefully filling out the textures around them until a humble magnificence is achieved. 9/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

Neko Case Blacklisted (Mint)
Admired by country buffs and indie-ites alike, Ms. Case is sure to please with this third, largely self-penned collection of heartbroken, moonlit melodies. Accordion, banjo, saw and piano support all manner of guitars—played by an impressive cast of Boyfriends and girlfriends—which invariably come second to Case’s soulful, wail-to-whisper vocals. Often minimal and maxed out with wide-open reverb, these hunted, haunted and homesick ditties tend toward the lovelorn and the boozy, but rarely the dreary. Now get up from under that damn van. 8/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)