The Bug: "London Zoo" (Ninja Tune) (rating: 9)

A long time partner of Godflesh and Jesu's Justin Broadrick (in God, Ice, the Sidewinder, Curse of the Golden Vampire and Techno Animal), Kevin Martin cradled obsessive talents for years under collaborative projects, all secretly his babies, but found in his Bug project a rare calling within dancehall and the raw blueprint for what would one day be called dubstep. The Bug is terminal. It lays off the dub-poetry-laden side of Pressure on London Zoo, but it heightens the zero hour terror of what exactly it means to be (barely) alive in Summer of 2008, the shuffling and volatile heartbeat of history ready to rain down distress from every corner. Martin shines floodlights in those corners, revealing a barefaced volatility as palpable as that found on Dre's "The Chronic" (recorded mere weeks after the LA riots). His Jamaican-by-way-of-England guest MCs splatter "London Zoo's" canvas with blood, vitriol, and plangent dystopianist alarmism. Martin himself scores the mayhem with machine gun jolts, ominous tolling bells, murky sub-bass, and reverberating dystopianist alarm clocks, from the 8-bit bleeper to the seizure-stuttering variety. The Bug is viral. Even though the MCs inked their own diatribes independent of one another for separate sessions, occasionally even in direct discord with one another thematically, the individual tracks still piece together like snap-puzzle components, as if they were each tapping into the same conversation, the same synaptic nerve of the collective unconscious. The Bug is infectious. It's a vision of a world gripped by prepossessed fear and hatred, as if by a "rage" outbreak. It's also packed with full-on soundboy contagions of propulsive beats and lyrical hooks, enjoyable as much as a ghettoblaster that scares the neighborhood children, a paranoid headphone chin-scratcher guaranteed to bring about a case of stoned inertia creeps.

Timothy Gabriele

The Faint: "Fasciinatiion" (blank.wav) (rating: 6)

While the Faint have been kicking around for over a decade, their danceable retro-styled, synth-fueled punk is currently "en vogue" thanks to the explosion of nostalgia for all-things '80s _ or just things that remind us of the '80s. Very little has changed since their last album. The band formed their own label. Lead singer Todd Baechle got married and changed his last name to "Fink." And the Faint's punky, indie-rocktronic dance sound is still firmly intact. Now that we're all caught up, one thing has changed. The Faint may sound the same stylistically; however, they've fallen in line with the statement-heavy lyrics that usually accompany the indie-rock genre. This social consciousness has been merged with the Faint's signature carefree smack in the mouth of boogie-friendly synth and electronica that would be right at home at a rave. Lyrically, "Fasciinatiion" leans heavily in the direction of sci-fi in its vision of the future. The Gary Numan-esque "The Geeks Were Right", a plucky sci-fi odyssey stands right alongside "99 Luftballoons" as one of the most cheerful laments about future catastrophe, ever. Bass-heavy electronic burps pulsate behind Fink's monotone vocal stylings, managing a shred of emotion of a rendered-speechless Lovecraft-meets-Orwellian protagonist with the song's chorus, "When I saw the future / The geeks were right." At other times, the Faint speak volumes with their car crash pile-up lyrics. The bleak "A Battle Hymn for Children" intertwines a criticism of war and raising a future generation for nothing but. The band's essence remains the same and their latest offering maintains the band's spirit of whimsy, but there is a more serious tone all around. The Faint have grown up. Just a bit.
 
Lana Cooper

Richie Havens: "Nobody Left to Crown" (Verve Forecast) (rating: 7)

Richie Havens has traveled full circle. In 1967, the Brooklyn-born musician/poet/painter laid his musically eclectic sensibilities to vinyl on "Mixed Bag." The vanguard of new singer-songwriters then epitomized by Verve Forecast was an appropriate home for his debut, an album that featured his interpretations of Bob Dylan, Jesse Fuller and Gordon Lightfoot, as well as his own compositions. The "mixed bag" ethos became the cardinal rule of Havens' career: raised on doo-wop and gospel, versed in folk, and regarded for his distinct guitar tunings, Havens never ceased playing or recording since that auspicious debut, changing with and documenting the times on his six-string guitar. He's a warhorse of the road, ever committed to the troubadour life he began years ago as a new arrival on the Greenwich Village coffee house scene. Unlike the prickly attitude of his more celebrated peers, Havens has not forsaken his folk renown. Nowhere is this more apparent than on "Nobody Left to Crown," his stunning return to the label that introduced him to the world 40 years ago. "Nobody Left to Crown" completes the trilogy of Havens' output for the '00s. "Wishing Well" (2002) and "Grace of the Sun" (2004), released on his own Stormy Forest imprint, indicated that some of Havens' best material has arrived in the latter part of his career. With a return to the label that started his recording career, "Nobody Left to Crown" is the most consistently good of the three albums. Like the most prolific songwriters and storytellers, Havens is a man who still has so many more things to say, in both his own words and through the work of others who touch his firery, poetic soul.

Christian Wikane

The Avett Brothers: "The Second Gleam" (Ramseur) (rating: 6)

"The Second Gleam," the new EP from the Avett Brothers, is a good example of the band's quieter side. The six songs here show off the trio as a group of balladeers, each one as capable as the other at taking the leading man's spot and tugging at your heartstrings. Here the brothers often tackle their past, sing about what they want to leave behind and what they want to keep, which is usually the woman they love. It's a short album about growing up, about moving on from much while still clinging to the wants they have in front of them. It's also an album that is, for all its quiet, very versatile. It's good driving music, good hanging around the house music, good on the iPod during the train ride to work, good for dinner parties. "The Second Gleam" is strong throughout, simple but always well-executed and heartfelt, and with enough small surprises to keep you guessing. The quiet of the record is nothing new for the Avetts. Their recordings have always been more tempered than their live act, relying on their spot-on musicianship, sweet vocals, and perfect harmonies to drive their songs of heartache and deep wanting. This subdued approach works for them. It manages to strip down and calm their live sound without losing any energy. This EP has that same appeal. Stand outs "Murder in the City" and "Bella Donna" show off all the band's strengths in the span of a combined six minutes, showing their ability to weave a story through their simple acoustic tunes.

Matthew Fiander

Murs & 9th Wonder: "Sweet Lord" (self-released) (rating: 7)

With 11 years under his belt and plenty of albums and collaborations to fill his portfolio, Murs returned to the studio with 9th Wonder to make "Sweet Lord," their third album together. Similarly, 9th was busy with former group Little Brother as well as other duos and guest spots. If you have been keeping track, this album is just slightly out-of-nowhere. The only major promotion for the record came during the week before its online release. But it did come out two years after their last stellar effort, "Murray's Revenge," which dropped two years after their equally amazing debut, "Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition." Unlike those albums, however, "Sweet Lord" is more of a promotion than a standalone record. With his major label debut, "Murs for President," coming soon, Murs decided to give back to his faithful fans by offering this one for free. Radiohead basically started the pay-what-you-want system, but unlike "In Rainbows," this one is just a gift. Keeping in line with the other 9th and Murs efforts, "Sweet Lord" is a 10-track, under-40-minute collection of braggadocio, humor, soul, and boom-bap. There is nothing on Sweet Lord that comes close to the level of "Walk Like a Man" or "D.S.W.G. (Dark Skinned White Girls)" off the first two albums. "Marry Me" and "Nina Ross" almost get there, but they lack that extra punch. Also, a lot of the tracks, no matter how enjoyable, sound rushed. And it's probably accurate to say that they were, especially considering that both Murs and 9th have been busy with other projects. Still, this builds the anticipation for "Murs for President" most effectively.

Andrew Martin

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