WEEN
Quebec (Sanctuary/EMI)
The first tune may ape Motörhead, but on their eighth studio album, it's themselves that the weird-rock wonder twins Dean and Gene are imitating. Tell me the pastoral prog of "Tried and True" ain't right off The Mollusk, that "Fancy Pants" isn't a, uh, companion piece to "Mr. Richard Smoker," or that the early days in the Pod don't return elsewhere. Fun 'n' games aside, Quebec contains no small count of solemn psych-rock episodes, like "Among His Tribes," and the best of both worlds - sombre and silly - meet for horrorshow bubblegum on "Happy Colored Marbles." Now, what's up with the title? 8.5/10 (Rupert Bottenberg)

MINK LUNGS
I'll Take It (Arena Rock/Outside)
There's something a little sordid about this band, with their pill poppin' cover star, "Monster Mash" vocals and lyrics about tight, warm pants. In any case, the ambitious sophomore album by these perverse Brooklyn-ites features 17 warped, schizo tracks, and like a person on the brink of insanity, the excited buzz quickly degenerates into unpleasantness. There's thick 'n' sleazy rock one minute, angry phone messages the next and syrupy new wave pop after that, a sound mix if it weren't for all the forced quirkiness. In short, it's the Picket Fences of rock albums. 6.5/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

THE MISFITS
Project 1950 (Misfits/Rykodisc)
Egads man! The only remaining original Misfit, Jerry Only, drags his dead horse through the mud by teaming up with Marky Ramone and ex-Black Flag member Dez Cadena. Because he can't write a song to save his life (check out the Misfits' recent record, American Psycho), the band covers classics like "Monster Mash," "Great Balls of Fire," "Dream Lover" and "Magic Moments." Sounds shitty? You betcha! It was bad enough when Only kept the Misfits going without Glenn Danzig, but now that everyone's left him, why does he continue tarnishing the name of one of punk rock's greatest bands? Does he really need the money this badly? 3/10 (Johnson Cummins)

DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL
A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar (Vagrant)
I know I'm in the minority here, but singer-songwriter Chris Carrabba's sappy weepers really get on my tits. If you're like me, his trademark open-diary lyrics and emotional whine are guaranteed to make you livid. But taking aim at Carraba's melodramatic, self-absorbed little ditties and Rick-Springfield-with-tattoos pansiness is like shooting fish in a barrel, so I'll redirect my blackened rage to something far worse than his music - his fans. On the DVD, you can watch these myopic, painfully Caucasian, backpack-wearing, pre-mature ejaculators sing and weep along to his duds. Looking forward to your letters, ya pussies! 3/10 (Johnson Cummins)

BROADCAST
Ha Ha Sound (Warp/Outside)
As hinted on their recent EP, Pendulum, this British trio is venturing further and further into the space rock stratosphere with each mecha-lullaby and celestial jam. This album - the first proper long-player since 2000's The Noise Made by People - is ripe with soft, starry-eyed melodies, rough electro textures, crosshatches of offbeat jazz, and Trish Kennan's ever exquisite hums and croons. With their scattered batch of sounds so expertly orchestrated and mixed into a sumptuous whole, Broadcast have clearly, confidently stepped out of Stereolab's shadow. 9/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

VARIOUS
Covered (Obsessive/Fusion III)
I'll bet Kazaa and Limewire can't cough up this much genre-crossed goodness, a sweet selection of 20 covers in which the Stooges go hillbilly, Bowie gets skewed and sampled and INXS get funked up. You'll hear Tiga doing Nelly, Squarepusher doing Joy Division, the Slits doing Marvin Gaye, Simian and Mirwais tackling two Stones tracks, and a token hit, Kelly O's take on Madonna. Every comp has its stinkers - in this case, the worst offence may be Reel Big Fish's A-ha, as if we didn't hear that enough in '98 - but overall, this here's some party gold. 8/10 (Lorraine Carpenter)

VARIOUS
Snow Robots Volume 3 (Suction)
For the last six years, Toronto's Suction Records have been repping Canadian synthpop on an international scale. While most electroclash casualties find the dye-jobs on their faux-hawks quickly fading, label founders and artists Gregory De Rocher (Lowfish) and Jason Amm (Solvent) are stronger than ever. Their third Snow Robots comp showcases upcoming Suction releases and exclusive tracks. First the good news: 13 tracks of pure synthpop, from the arpeggiated, John Carpenter-esque "The Plot" by Orgue Electronique to exclusives by GD Luxxe and Montreal's David Kristian, and the Solvent/Lowfish collab "Tinfoil Teakettle." Now, the not-so-bad news: it's only available from www.suctionrecords.com. 8/10 (Raf Katigbak)

APPARAT
Duplex (Shitkatapult)
Okay, it's official. Shitkatapult is one of the best electronic labels around. Take, for example, how they follow up the success of T.Raumschmiere's fist-pumping ode to stadium rock (aka The Great Rock 'N' Roll Swindle). They could have easily dropped another heavy metal techno masterpiece and earned blurbs like, "Shitkatapult does it again!" Instead they flip the script entirely and drop one of the most intimate and beautiful records I've heard in a while. Sure it uses familiar granular patch tricks, but here, it's just one part of a bigger picture (the rest of the picture being melancholy piano, triumphant swells and psychedelic melodies). With its gut-wrenching chords squeezed from synthesizers and samples, Duplex has the lonely familiarity of a classic spaghetti western soundtrack that sounds like it's being beamed in from light years away. Excellent! 8.5/10 (Raf Katigbak)

UGLY DUCKLING
Taste the Secret (Emperor Norton)
Mmmm-mmm! Nuthin' starts the day off better than a good ol' fashioned, thick and nutritious, family-sized meatshake! With a playfulness reminiscent of the Beastie Boys' Paul's Boutique and De La Soul's Three Feet High and Rising, Ugly Duckling remember that hip hop is supposed to be fun. With party tracks like "Turn It Up" and "Dumb It Down," the fast-food trio drop silly rhymes about all-meat meals, pesky vegans and keeping it dumb to some dirty, funked-out samples. No processed beats here folks, we're talkin' family value, grade A beats, so come to Meatshake and taste the secret(tm). 8/10 (Lateef Martin)

KAMAU
First EP (CreationCompany)
This Toronto MC has a tone that urges you to stop and listen closely to his words. Kamau celebrates life, love and the seemingly eternal struggle we all go through in order to find a balance amidst it all. This cat oozes positivity and cleverly avoids beating listeners over the head with recycled native tongue themes. You may remember Kamau from his brief appearance on Exit by K-OS, an MC with whom he shares a dedication to exposing the internal struggle to live life to the fullest. This is a short but sweet debut, produced completely by Kamau, and a clear indicator of what he's capable of. I would definitely look for future projects from this promising poet. 7/10 (Scott C)

VARIOUS
Up North Trip Vol. 2 (UnderPressure)
Those of you who think there's no underground Canadian hip hop worth getting excited about can think again. What you have here is a cross-section of Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Halifax and Vancouver acts doing their thing. Notables include Simahlak and Theology 3's aptly titled "Under Pressure," as well as the now classic Patrick Batemen joint, "Aim at Building." There's "Work It Out" from T.O.'s reigning female, Eternia, and the unbelieveable "Raw," featuring Checkmate, Concise and Royce the 5'9 with DJ Revolution. Hopefully there won't be another crazy ridiculous wait for the next installment of this underground, independent hip hop series. 7.5/10 (Scott C)

VARIOUS
The Rough Guide to American Roots (World Music Network)
This compilation exposes American roots music with songs dating from the great depression to the present, with a really informative booklet to help you dig into it a bit deeper. The album works on all levels thanks to its diversified genres, such as jazz, blues, gospel, bluegrass and zydeco. The line-up here is nothing short of stunning - the Staple Singers, Big Mama Thornton, Pete Seeger, Muddy Waters, Woody Guthrie, Ricky Scaggs , Bill Munroe and the Bluegrass Boys, but Mahalia Jackson's testifying wail in "Nobody Knows" or Koko Taylor's holler on "Voodoo Woman" alone make this a must-have. 8.5/10 (Johnson Cummins)

LSG
LSG2 (Elektra/Warner)
The triple threat of Gerald Levert, Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill was an innovative and dynamic combination on their '97 debut, but this second collaboration is a disappointment, running contrary to the old adage about the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. The qualities that make each vocalist unique - Levert's gruffness, Sweat's pleading, Gill's outbursts - are largely lost here, with each artist trying harder to blend than to wax their respective skills. Not surprisingly, the best moments, on tracks like "Yesterday" and "What About Me," come when glimmers of those individual styles creep out. 6.5/10 (Gerard Dee)

JOE LOVANO
On This Day (at the Vanguard) (Blue Note/EMI)
The rarely disappointing Mr. Lovano is back with the nonet, this time "live" on a release that could have been titled "Stompin' at the Vanguard" - you'll understand what I mean when you hear the opener. Again, Cleveland-based orchestrator Willie "Face" Smith adds just the right touch of Dameronia to three tracks. Lovano has some "heavy" players in George Garzone, Ralph Lalama and Barry Ries, and the rhythm team of John Hicks, Dennis Irwin and Lewis is back intact. The music here, by Tadd, Joe, Trane and Strayhorn (and a gorgeous rendering of "Laura"), is lovingly played and updated with care. More please! 9.5/10 (Len Dobbin)

Mini CD Reviews

GERRY MULLIGAN AND JOHNNY HODGES Mulligan Meets Hodges (Verve/Universal) A long-awaited reissue of a 1959 session with Claude Williamson, Buddy Clark and Mel Lewis. 10 (LD)

MISS MOLLY Tales From St. Laurent (independent) Look out for this local femme fatale, whose mix CD of deep, funky house started a living room dance session at my place that lasted 'til the wee hours. 8 (RK)

PO' GIRL self-titled (Jericho Beach) Mtl's Allison Russell and a Be Good Tanya peel some soulful folk off Vancouver's mean streets. 7.5 (LC)

KREATOR Live Kreation (SPV/Fusion III) One of heavy metal's founding fathers tackle songs from their 20-year career. 7 (JC)

PANSY DIVISION Total Entertainment! (Alternative Tentacles) With so little homocore out there, it's a shame Pansy Division's can't do any better than this. Go to Buzzcocks for good gay punk. 5 (LC)

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