01:00 AM EDT on Sunday, July 23, 2006

Dashboard Confessional

Dusk and Summer (Vagrant)

Four albums into his career as Dashboard Confessional, it's safe to call Chris Carrabba a drama queen. Every romantic encounter is a passion play that demands a full-lung wail and accompanying drum rolls. Every breakup is a hair-ripping-out tragedy.

Maybe it's a legacy of his past as singer for the Christian hard-core band Further Seems Forever that makes him paint everything in such biblical extremes. Or maybe he feels he needs to live up to the band's emo tag by (over)emoting.

Whatever, the "sturm und drang" get tiresome, and unintentionally comic, when he claims his "capillaries scream" -- that, I'd like to see.

Screaming is the tattooed heartthrob's signature sound and theme; he first developed a somewhat disturbingly cultlike following with the angst anthem "Screaming Infidelities." But not every song needs an exclamation mark. There are times I want to hush the CD and implore the former teacher's aide to use his indoor voice.

Carrabba does modulate his volume to accommodate the richer tones of Counting Crows' Adam Duritz on "So Long, So Long." That song, about saying goodbye to summer beach romance, has "hit" written all over it, in a maudlin way.

-- EVELYN McDONNELL

The Miami Herald

Dashboard Confessional and Say Anything are at The Opera House, 539 Washington St., Boston, at 7 p.m. Aug. 13. Tickets are $26. Call (401) 331-2211 or go to www.ticketmaster.com.

Sara Tavares

Balance (Times Square)

What's left of Portugal's former empire are scattered strongholds of the Portuguese language and a geography-defying musical kinship that binds a good part of Portuguese-speaking pop.

Sara Tavares was born in Portugal to a family with roots in the Cape Verde islands off Senegal, and on her album Balance she presents Lisbon as a creolized city, a musical hub for Portugal, its former colonies and some of their neighbors in Africa and the Americas.

She draws ideas from Cape Verde, Angola, Brazil and Portugal itself; "De Nua" puts a drumbeat behind the Arab-Iberian quavers of a guest Portuguese fado singer, Ana Moura. Tavares' positive-thinking lyrics, calling for love and kindness, are in Portuguese sprinkled with English and African words.

She lets one song hint -- not too heavy-handedly -- at reggae, another at Rickie Lee Jones. And her voice can caress phrases with the breathy ease of a Brazilian pop singer or take on a sharper African edge. But she never forces anything. Fusions that could easily turn out to be self-conscious and contrived turn out sounding supple and spontaneous instead.

Tavares, who was born in 1978, is no novice. She won pop contests on Portuguese television and sang funk and gospel before turning toward African styles; Lokua Kanza, a Congolese Parisian, produced her second album.

Balance is her third, and Tavares not only produced it herself, she also picked and plucked many of the layered, syncopated acoustic guitar vamps that make the music dance. The songs glide by with the cosmopolitan poise of a woman who can find the world in her hometown.

-- JON PARELES

New York Times News Service

Julie Roberts

Men & Mascara (Mercury Nashville)

Why isn't Julie Roberts one of country's biggest stars?

She's got a big, soulful voice. She picks (and occasionally writes) great songs to sing. She gets radio play (though probably not enough). Critics love her, but her music is still thoroughly mainstream. Plus, she's easy on the eyes.

With all that going for her, you'd think Roberts would be huge. The title track of the South Carolinian's second album, Men & Mascara, was released to radio months ago and it's one of the best country songs of the year. Yet it didn't even dent the charts.

The song's money line is as perfect a country lyric as you'll find without mention of David Allan Coe's five pillars of country songwriting: mama, trains, trucks, prison and getting drunk. It makes you wonder why someone hadn't used it before: "Men and mascara always run."

Despite a last-minute addition, the new single "Girl Next Door," the album's weakness may be its slow-to-middling tempo and generally downbeat feel. Here's hoping the extra boost does something even more magical -- make Roberts the star she deserves to be.

-- SHANE HARRISON

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Julie Roberts sings at 8 p.m. Aug. 21 and 22 at the Mohegan Sun's Wolf Den, Mohegan Sun Boulevard (exit 79A off Route 395), Uncasville, Conn. There is no cover. For information, call (888) 226-7711, ext. 7163.

Pet Shop Boys

Fundamental (Rhino)

File Fundamental, the Pet Shop Boys' ninth studio release, on the top shelf with the pair's previous favorites Very, Bilingual and Behavior. Given that even die-hard devotees of the British duo have grumbled about the last couple of discs -- Release, four years ago, was regrettably lackluster -- this is great news, especially since the Pet Shop Boys are responsible for some of the smartest and best crafted pop music of the last 20 years.

Fundamental, with production by Trevor Horn and a distinct '80s flavor, doesn't feel so much a creative reinvention as merely a terrific Pet Shop Boys album in which Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe reclaim what it is that they do best: compose infectious hooks and concise and compassionate psychological studies.

The sublime balladry of "Casanova in Hell," for instance, revisits "Can You Forgive Her?" from 1993's Very as it depicts an obviously gay man struggling to perform sexually with a woman. The warm, nostalgic feel of "The Sodom and Gomorrah Show" recalls ELO's "Xanadu" contributions musically. Only "I'm With Stupid," a satirical imagining of President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair as dopey lovers, doesn't hit quite as hard as it intends.

Otherwise, "Minimal" and "Integral" are classic Pet Shop Boys dance numbers, better than anything on Madonna's latest Eurodisco album, and the duo take some new steps here and there. The dark and thumping "Psychological" mines Depeche Mode synth-pop territory and the ballad "Numb," an Aerosmith reject written by schlockmeister Diane Warren, transcends its source thanks to Tennant's haunting vocal and a rich string arrangement. Few acts of this vintage can honor their trademark sound and still sound as fresh and relevant as Pet Shop Boys manage with ease here.

Fundamental, one of the year's better pop albums, is also available as a two-disc set including club remixes and a new duet with Elton John on "In Private," a tune the Pet Shop Boys originally produced for Dusty Springfield in the '90s.

-- HOWARD COHEN

The Miami Herald

Keane

Under the Iron Sea (Interscope)

Keane is suave.

The plaintive still life of pounded pianos and darkly layered electronics winding through grand arching chords that reach between the diabolical and the glorious -- that's suave.

Tom Chapin's chilled, rich baritone is suave, even if his lyrics -- joyous, brooding -- are mawkish.

Yet, with the exception of Noel Coward musicals and the second Roxy Music album, being suave in pop can be an empty exercise. You keep waiting for the hot, emotional payoff to the snappy (even classy) "Crystal Blue" and the overly languid, solipsistic "Nothing in My Way." But nothing comes.

Lots of nothing.

Not always, mind you. The Edge-meets-Bowie sunburst of guitar and drama that is "Is It Any Wonder" is royal and kinetic. "Broken Toy" is dry and spacey. Chapin's croon yearns to churn.

But despite its vocals and some gorgeously straining strains, this Sea is hermetically sealed by a dam content not to burst. Yet.

-- A.D. AMOROSI

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Donavon Frankenreiter

Move By Yourself (Lost Highway)

Like James Hunter and Eric Lindell earlier this year, Donavon Frankenreiter serves up his own particular brand of old-school soul on his second album. And the results are just as satisfying.

Move By Yourself has a sweetly insinuating vibe. Like the pro surfer he is, Frankenreiter glides smoothly over these slow to midtempo, '70s-rooted grooves, his high, airy voice more caressing than urgent.

There are exceptions to this generally mellow approach: The clavinet-fueled title song has a thumpingly insistent rhythm to match the assertive advice of the lyrics; "Girl Like You" exudes a freewheeling, summer-party atmosphere; and the hymnlike "All Around Us" builds to a sweeping, gospel-like climax.

-- NICK CRISTIANO

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Julieta Venegas

Limon y Sal (Sony/BMG)

"I'm so tired of love songs," Julieta Venegas proclaims on the opening track of this captivating album, before going on to a whole CD of love songs that bring this too-often-cliched genre wonderfully alive again.

Limon y Sal (Lemon and Salt) is romance for grown-ups: ambivalent and full of wonder, bitter and joyful, with the most delicious melodies. It's Venegas' creation bottom to top: she wrote or co-wrote all but one song, plays guitar, keyboards and accordion, and co-produced.

Her last album, Si, lifted her from cult to unlikely pop star status. This one should make her that rare creature, an adult star, an original artist with something to say in a way that hits the charts.

The songs alternate between giving up on love and rejoicing in it, but they're never simple. On the title track (co-written with Bacilos' Jorge Villamizar) she wryly acknowledges the imperfections of love -- "I never believed in happiness" -- and her lover -- "you never say anything romantic at sunset" -- before admitting that "just having you close/ I feel like I start over."

All this is set to lovely, catchy music. Even when the sentiment is sad, the music makes you want to skip or sing. There are sunny Beatles-esque horns, touches of cumbia. Dante Spinetta, formerly of funk duo Illya Kuryaki, raps on the infectious "Primer Dia," while Anita Tijoux adds a homegirl touch to "Eres Para Mi" ("You're For Me").

And Julieta Venegas is for anyone who loves good pop music.

-- JORDAN LEVIN

The Miami Herald

Avishai Cohen

Continuo (RazDaz)

A lot of cool desert air comes from this set by Israeli bassist and composer Avishai Cohen. The former sideman of pianists Danilo Perez and Chick Corea, who signed to Corea's Stretch label in 1997, fashions a mostly quartet set that blends Middle Eastern, classical and jazz influences in one potent stream.

The set is notable for the high visibility of Amos Hoffman's oud, the fretless, stringed instrument of Arab origin. Hoffman's oud gives this session a haunting set of tones that presents new perspectives.

Cohen, of course, is a Jaco Pastorius devotee, and he honors the master's aura without stealing it blind. His 10 originals meld drive and verve.

The title track begins with Cohen's six-string Marco bass sounding as lithe as a guitar before the world beat of drummer Mark Giuliani makes for a camel-choppy ride. Pianist Sam Bash is alert to the rhythms and the onrush of influences that prevail here, from classical figures to hints of Weather Report.

Another staple is the frequency of vamps. Cohen uses these repeating chords to create a sense of mystery.

-- KARL STARK

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Avishai Cohen is at the JVC Jazz Festival-Newport at Fort Adams State Park, Fort Adams Drive (off Ocean Drive), on Aug. 13, along with The Dave Brubeck Quartet, Angelique Kidjo, Chris Botti, Savion Glover and many others. Tickets are $65 in advance, $70 festival weekend (if available); $5 children under 12; children under 2 free. Reserved seating on the JVC Stage is $75. On-site parking is $6. The festival runs from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Call (401) 847-3700 or (866) 468-7619, or go to www.Ticketweb.com or www.festivalproductions.net.

Diana Ross

Blue (Motown)

After spending the '60s as the beehived lead voice of the Supremes, Diana Ross remade her image as a solo artist with her Oscar-nominated portrayal of Billie Holiday in Lady Sings the Blues. As a companion piece to the soundtrack, Ross recorded a set of jazz standards, Blue, in late '71 and early '72, but it ended up shelved in favor of more standard pop material.

Ross' clear, unaffected vocals work well on soft and seductive ballads such as "What a Difference a Day Makes" and "Can't Get Started With You." But on big and brassy numbers like "I Loves Ya Porgy" and "Love Is Here To Stay," Gil Askey's Vegas-styled arrangements overwhelm Ross' relatively thin voice.

Inconsistent but at least less misguided than, say, Rod Stewart's attempts at standards, Blue is an important, worthy addition to Ross' legacy.

-- STEVE KLINGE

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Rita Lee

Bossa n' Beatles (Ghordo Music)

If you haven't actually listened to it, the idea of singing Beatles classics like "A Hard Day's Night" or "Michelle" as languid bossa nova sounds as though it should be cheesy, a lazy gimmick that would ruin the songs' sprightly pop genius.

Instead, Rita Lee's bossa 'n' Beatles sounds great. The easygoing bossa flow blends beautifully with the Beatles' marvelous melodies. You can't improve on the Beatles. But Lee -- formerly with legendary Brazilian psychedelic band Os Mutantes -- gives a relaxed, straightforward take on their music that brings out some of its lovelier aspects, like its carefree spirit and emotion unmarked by cynicism, lust or self-consciousness. It's respectful, but also sprightly and affectionate, lifting off the layers of legend and pop nostalgia to let you hear the songs fresh again.

"With a Little Help From My Friends" sounds shimmering and optimistic; "She Loves You" becomes a sophisticated ballad. "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" is a languid, jazzy dream trip. Perfect for the tropics, vacation, or falling in love.

It's not a replacement for the Beatles, but Lee has some lovely fun with them -- and hey, isn't that pop music?

-- JORDAN LEVIN

The Miami Herald

Shawnna

Block Music (Disturbing Tha Peace/Def Jam)

Shawnna opens "Damn," a horn-accented club banger on her sophomore solo album Block Music, by mentioning at least two of her obsessions: designer footwear and her Windy City hometown. "Now you can tell my stilettos cost about $900/ I'm in Miami, acting ghetto, talking about Chi run it," she boasts. Like many of rap's female MCs, Shawnna's in touch with her pleasure principle.

However, that admission is tame compared to the sexual activity she lovingly describes on the disc's salacious first single, "Gettin' Some." The song, built around a Too Short sample, is a prime example of her unapologetic attitude, a characteristic that she embraces as the lone female member of Ludacris' Disturbing tha Peace camp.

The title track features buzzing synths and a squelchy, video-game like sound effect as Shawnna sneers: "Got your jaws dropping/ The AK get to chop-choppin'/ The whole block stop but I'm still knockin'." And sharing mic time with 8Ball & MJG on the raucous anthem "Candy Coated," she knows her "heavy loaded, pink Impala" can compete with the big boys.

But when Shawnna gets personal, the disc takes an earnest turn for the worse. On "Can't Break Me" with songstress Shareefa, Shawnna reflects on the resilience she exhibited during early family and professional struggles. Only the addition of her father, blues legend Buddy Guy, who adds supple, evocative guitar licks, saves the otherwise limp track.

The attempt to paint her as more than a vapid, naughty girl is admirable. But given the contagious, skittering beats and sultry propositions on "Lil Daddy What's Good," Shawnna sounds best coming on strong.

-- BRETT JOHNSON

Associated Press

The New Cars

It's Alive (Eleven Seven)

The New Cars is kind of like The New Coke. The flavoring is close enough to remind you of a classic, revamped a bit, but destined to be a miscalculation nonetheless.

The New Cars is the beloved The Cars but without any of the important parts that made the old Cars go-go-go to the top with favorites like "Let's Go," "Shake It Up" and "Drive." Gone: Chief songwriter, voice and visual frontman Ric Ocasek. Drummer David Robinson. Ben Orr, lead singer on many of the hits, didn't have a choice; he died.

Instead, Todd Rundgren, who last had a Top 40 hit in 1978, the year of The Cars' original debut album, takes the lead role and disconcertingly morphs his voice into a self-conscious facsimile of Ocasek's, even when he's singing a live version of one of his own tunes ("I Saw the Light"). Why?

However, original members Greg Hawkes and Elliot Easton energize the 15 live tracks by playing harder. The original Cars had a poor reputation as a live act and this model cooks, Rundgren notwithstanding.

And "It's Alive" also tantalizingly points to the future, even as it looks back, by offering three new studio songs that are much better and catchier than anything on the Cars' last proper album (Door to Door in 1987). A full "new" studio Cars album suddenly sounds like an inviting prospect.

-- HOWARD COHEN

The Miami Herald

Cheap Trick

Rockford (Big3)

After more than a decade of wandering in the sonic wilderness, the power-pop quartet from Rockford, Ill., is back to doing what it does best -- crafting unforgettable melodies and slathering them in angry guitars and Beatles-esque harmonies atop a pounding rhythm section.

Unlike their last two studio releases, 1997's Cheap Trick and 2003's Special One, guitarist Rick Nielsen and company offer up hard-and-fast rockers that hark back to an earlier era when seemingly every teenager in America owned a copy of Cheap Trick at Budokan.

The first single, "Perfect Stranger," instantly bores its way into your brain and won't let go, with Robin Zander's plaintive vocals supported by bassist Tom Petersson and drummer Bun E. Carlos' urgent underpinnings. More tasty hooks and memorable melodies abound on "Give it Away," which, like many tracks here, is actually a leftover from past tours that is only now seeing the light of day.

And don't be fooled by the duplicate song titles of two tracks here: "Come On Come On" and "O Claire" are totally different songs than the Cheap Trick tunes from the 1970s that bear the same names.

So it's 2006 and Cheap Trick still wants you to want them. After a trip back to Rockford, you will.

-- WAYNE PARRY

Associated Press

A.J. Croce

Cantos (Seedling/Redeye)

Three cuts into his new album, A.J. Croce performs Paul McCartney's "Maybe I'm Amazed." As covers go, it's pretty superfluous -- almost a note-for-note remake. But the McCartney reference is telling: If the ex-Beatle had made Cantos, it would be considered one of his best albums.

The son of the late Jim Croce has evolved into quite a popmeister since his start as a robust purveyor of R&B and swing somewhere between Dr. John and Harry Connick Jr. Cantos is his most low-key, homespun effort, as piano ballads alternate with acoustic guitar-based numbers whose echoes of country and folk carry the only traces of his earlier forays into Americana.

Croce brings to these tunes a light, McCartneyesque touch for melody and hooks, without ever succumbing to the former mop-top's penchant for syrupy sentimentality.

-- NICK CRISTIANO

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Alejandro Escovedo

The Boxing Mirror (Back Porch)

His first album since 2000 is a compelling masterwork, but any return is a triumphant one for Alejandro Escovedo. Diagnosed with hepatitis C in the late '90s, the Texas singer and songwriter nearly died in 2003 from complications associated with the disease.

Escovedo lingered in the hospital with internal bleeding, an abdominal tumor and cirrhosis of the liver before slowly recovering, while anxious friends recorded Por Vida: A Tribute to the Songs of Alejandro Escovedo to help pay his medical bills.

The Boxing Mirror is also a tribute to the perseverance that not only brought Escovedo back to health but into a recording studio. His smart, rootsy song craft has never been stronger, and he finds a potent foil in producer John Cale of Velvet Underground fame. Cale also plays keyboards and guitar here, and his avant-garde sensibility brings an arty edge to Escovedo's songs with an ominous synth part on "Arizona" and squalling guitar on the deeply unsettling "Notes on Air."

Snarling rockers such as "Sacramento & Polk" hark back to Escovedo's days in the punk-country outfit Rank & File, and "The Ladder" sounds like it could have come straight from a dusty desert cantina on a boiling hot summer day.

Although the album is loaded with vivid lyrics and turbulent emotions, Escovedo scarcely refers to his own health trouble. One of the few times he alludes to it, over a gentle electric guitar figure on the mournful "Died a Little Today," the singer vows, "Gonna learn how to give."

The songs on The Boxing Mirror suggest it's a pledge Escovedo took to heart.

-- ERIC R. DANTON

The Hartford Courant

Ronnie Milsap

My Life (RCA)

Forget the Ronnie Milsap who sang string-drenched ballads and dramatically soaring pop-country hits as one of the biggest country stars of the 1970s. That guy has been long gone.

Instead, the Milsap of more recent vintage is a sweet, finger-snapping Southern soul singer who balances breezy, feel-good tunes with moodier, instrospective lyrics that allow him to show off his emotion-rich voice. He now has more in common with American Idol champ Taylor Hicks than with the Milsap who wore brightly colored, rhinestone-studded tuxedos 30 years ago.

Working with Alan Jackson's producer Keith Steagall, Milsap sounds convincingly contemporary on upbeat fare like "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" and the gospel-testifying "Accept My Love." He's even better when reflecting on getting the best from each day on "My Life" or expressing pain and disappointment on the beautiful "If It's Gonna Rain."

Not everything works: The first single, "Local Girls," is too silly for a man of Milsap's age and talent. But overall "My Life" is a refreshing return to the scene by a 63-year-old veteran who sounds spryer and snappier than singers half his age.

-- MICHAEL McCALL

Associated Press

Teena Marie

Sapphire (Cash Money Classics/UMG)

Teena Marie -- a.k.a. Lady T -- was Mariah before Mariah, one of the few female blue-eyed soul singers embraced by urban R&B audiences.

In the second volley of a comeback campaign that launched in '04 with the superb La Dona (which followed a 13-year layoff from the biz), Marie is in strong, sultry voice for a sizzling, polished set of contemporary R&B that takes in tight-fitting cameos from her former Motown labelmate Smokey Robinson (standouts "God Has Created" and "Cruise Control") and rapper Kurupt (the gritty "Baby Who's Is It").

Also instantly memorable is the fast-moving radio hit "Ooh Wee," destined to be a fixture in clubs through summer. "Sapphire," which Marie also produced, is a spring treasure.

-- FRED SHUSTER

Los Angeles Daily News

David Ford

I Sincerely Apologise for All the Trouble I've Caused (Independiente/Columbia)

An impressive debut album with an impossibly long title -- and some equally long songs -- I Sincerely Apologise for All the Trouble I've Caused is a surprisingly subtle standout among the current crop from sensitive Brit balladeers.

More cynical than Damien Rice (but possessing a similar voice), David Ford is an angst-ridden, mid-tempo troubadour, albeit one with a self-deprecating sense of humor. Recorded almost singlehandedly in his home studio -- Ford plays everything from guitar to drums -- these nine songs (including one that hits the eight-minute mark) are strung together with an emotional intensity that never lets up.

-- NICOLE PENSIERO

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Yellowjackets

Twenty Five (Heads Up)

The Yellowjackets live on the cusp where jazz and R&B meet. Founded in 1981, the band is notable for being both popular and worthy of street cred.

This anniversary CD, recorded live at the New Morning nightclub in Paris, comes with a bonus DVD with 3 1/2 hours of live music plus several interviews.

The package gives a pleasant recap of the band's 25-year connection with fans. Mainstays Russell Ferrante on keyboards and electric bassist Jimmy Haslip have kept the mix highly melodic and focused on bright tunes and major keys.

Joined by tenor saxophonist Bob Mintzer in the early 1990s, the Yellowjackets found some fresh legs. The handsome lines of "Geraldine" on the DVD show Mintzer's lightness in blowing and his ability to sweeten a ballad. The drummer since 2000, Marcus Baylor joined a Yellowjackets tradition that includes Peter Erskine and keeps matters crackling.

This band is full of small victories -- they don't knock you out, and the emphasis on sweetness can get tiring -- yet they consistently make compelling music.

-- KARL STARK

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Nate Najar

Swinging With the Nate Najar Quartet (Blue Line Music)

To: Diana Krall.

Re: Your next guitar player.

Diana, you've had some of the best up-and-coming guitarists in your recording and touring bands, from Russell Malone to Dan Faehnle and, most recently, Anthony Wilson. Your next guitarist should be Nate Najar.

On his fourth album, Nate makes the difficult switch from electric guitar to nylon strings, yet retains his in-the-pocket cool jazz style. Listen to the rhythm playing throughout -- it would be the perfect complement to your piano. And his concise, always-melodic solos fit right in.

So, before your next tour kicks off, get his album at www.natenajar.com, or have your people call his people -- you won't be sorry.

-- STEVEN ROSENBERG

Los Angeles Daily News