New on CD 8/22/03

'truANT'On "truANT," Alien Ant Farm, a group best known for its gimmicky cover of Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal," turns already solid hard rock on its ear in the best kind of way.

The real innovation of Alien Ant Farm's latest effort is the music, as most of the songs are about a boyfriend trying to fix real or imagined relationship sins. The group turned the project into something special by adding elements of salsa, classical and jazz that enhance and differentiate.

Slinky horns and a guitar sound reminiscent of the James Bond theme add a seamy, mysterious undercurrent to "Never Meant," while acoustic guitars and strings add a desperate edge to "Hope." "Tia Lupe" is an alt-metal Latin combination that works; Alien Ant Farm also excels on "Quiet" and "1000 Days," two songs that don't make use of musical bells and whistles.

There are occasional missteps -- "S.S. Recognize" should have remained lost at sea and "Rubber Mallet" sounds like how it feels to be hit with one. But "truANT" is a definite keeper.

'The House Carpenter's Daughter'After 18 years with Elektra Records, Natalie Merchant has released her first solo album on her own label -- and it's clearly an album she's been dying to record.

"The House Carpenter's Daughter" is a collection of the singer-songwriter's favorite traditional folk songs. But much like Sinead O'Connor's "Sean-Nos Nua," a collection of Irish folk music, the latest Merchant release will likely only be heard by die-hard fans -- of Merchant or the genre.

The disc gets off to a slow start, but the second half, starting with the bluesy, rough-edged "Soldier, Soldier," which surprisingly is a revamped children's jump-rope song, gets more interesting.

"House Carpenter" is an old-fashioned melodic masterpiece with Merchant's voice accompanied by delicate banjo picking and a mournful violin.

Merchant does beautiful justice to the classic "Poor Wayfaring Stranger." And "Down on Penny's Farm" will make you want to kick off your shoes and dance in the sawdust.

'Greendale'Most have visited the town Neil Young & Crazy Horse detail on "Greendale," a made-up stop along the California coast inhabited with characters and families whose tragedies are as American as folk music.

Everyone knows someone fitting the archetypes Young has created on the album, a story in 10 songs of the Green family, who along with their small town, begin reeling when the modern world closes in.

With an ever-changing current of desperation, anger and loss, Young tells the story of the Greens' undoing over clunky electric riffs and acoustic ballads that sound like a mix of blues and country rock.

Young describes Grandpa, a loving curmudgeon lost in the modern world; Sun, a firebrand environmentalist; and Jed, a man who gets into drugs trying to find himself and kills a police officer, leading to the family's demise as the news media rushes to cover the story.

Grandpa has a heart attack as reporters swarm his porch, and Sun, his granddaughter, leaves for Alaska to protect the environment. The events are sweeping -- epic in a small-town scope -- but very real.

Rather than seeming overly dramatic, though, the town Young has created on "Greendale," with everyday characters and their everyday lives, is identifiable. The metaphors are many, and listeners don't have to scratch hard to see them all around the world we live in now.

'Restless'After nice outings in the past, going from roots and bluegrass to radio-happy tunes, Sara Evans has put those elements together on "Restless." And then some.

In "Backseat of a Greyhound Bus," already in country's Top 20, Evans shows a vocal variety that continues in the even better title song, with its Celtic drums and tin whistles.

A couple of orchestra-intensive productions -- "Niagara Falls" and Diane Warren's "Need to Be Next to You" -- change the mix. "Suds in the Bucket" and "Perfect" lighten it up.

"Tonight" starts out bluegrassy but ends up bluesy. And then the lady really sings the blues -- with R&B licks -- on "Big Cry."

She just belts on "Feel It Comin' On," one of the five songs she co-wrote on the 13-track album.

A sense of sameness in her prior CDs is replaced by wonderful variety in this one. The thoughtful song selection and arrangements adapt to the changing moods of the themes.

'Everyone Deserves Music'Again, Michael Franti uses his funky hip-hop to start a debate. While "Stay Human" explored race, drug and prison issues, "Everyone Deserves Music" begs the world to stop the cycle of violence.

From "We Don't Stop," with its lyrics, "A war on terror, a war on drugs, a war on kindness, a war on hugs," the danceable beat guides listeners through the current global circumstances. At times the situation looks bleak, with lyrics, "We can bomb the world to pieces but we can't bomb it into peace." The beats and Franti's charm ("If I were the rains, I'd wash away the whole world's pain") make the medicine go down.

Despite partial doom-and-gloom, you walk away with a tune in your head, and a sense that everyone can make a difference.

'Nice'Puffy AmiYumi has brought the complex and cartoonish world of Japanese pop music into a bit more clarity with their polished release "Nice."

It's easy to feel guilty for liking the approach of the young female duo Ami and Yumi. Their coy voices squeak out syrupy lyrics at every turn, and sound like something born of a karaoke contest dare. But this works because of the infectious melodies that surround their vocals. It's upbeat referential stuff that draws from various stages of American pop music sounds, from '50s surf tunes through upbeat power-guitar love ballads.

"When life is just a misery, Your kisses are the only levity," they sing on "Your Love Is a Drug," one of the English-language tracks.

But for pure fun, check out "Teen Titans Theme," aptly named for the TV series "Teen Titans" that airs on the Cartoon Network. Puffy AmiYumi holds nothing back as they belt out, "When there's evil on the attack, You can rest knowing they've got your back."

It's mostly charming, energetic girl-pop that will likely not catch hold outside of Japan, but is good, clean fun nonetheless.

'It's About Time'

Kenny Loggins' latest album, "It's About Time," is a bit soft in the middle. While his voice is sharp, it gets muddled in tender ballads.

"I Miss Us" and "The One That Got Away" -- both co-written by Richard Marx -- border on maudlin. "With This Ring," also written with Marx, seems bound for wedding day immortality with the lines, "I will be true, o' my heart, I promise you, With this ring."

But Loggins teamed with Clint Black for one of the better tracks, the spunky "Alive 'N' Kickin'," and he gets a shot of soul from Michael McDonald on the title cut.

Other standouts are "Doin' It Right," which echoes his string of 1980s hits, and "The Undeniable Groove," which is as funky as the title suggests.'Free'

Virtue's fourth album, "Free," is free of inhibition and exudes confidence in their message and its power. Like The Clark Sisters before them, Virtue's voices blend fluidly, and their songs are filled with creative vocal arrangements and high-energy attitude.

Play the opening tracks for any group of urban hipsters, and a dance party is likely to develop. Listen more closely, though, and you'll discover lyrics designed to better you and your situation by the grace of God.

The production on the first few tracks is heavy on the bass, making the songs sound a little too anxious. But lighter ballads such as "You Will Win if You Try" and "Worthy" establish an atmosphere for worship and introspection while allowing the heartfelt emotion in these three powerhouse voices to ring out.'It's Just the Night'

If any bluegrass band is going to break into the mainstream soon, it's The Del McCoury Band. A collaboration with Steve Earle raised the band's profile, and it is playing before ever-larger audiences. That wouldn't matter, of course, if the music didn't work.

But Del McCoury possesses one of the most distinctive voices in American music, and his ability to take songs by the likes of British folk-rocker Richard Thompson and make them sound as if they were written in the West Virginia hills -- as he does twice on "It's Just the Night" -- is uncanny. Few other bluegrass bands would be bold enough to include the Fairfield Four on vocals, but this band is not just following tradition, it's carving out the future of bluegrass.

And it's doing that with some of the finest instrumentalists in acoustic music. McCoury's son Ronnie is arguably the best bluegrass mandolin player on the planet, and Robbie McCoury is one of the finest banjo players going.

"It's Just the Night" is a showcase for the tremendous power and range of one of traditional music's premier bands, and it's the best bluegrass release so far this year.

- From wire reports

'It's My Turn'

'Synergy'

'On the Journey Home"

Pinecastle Records is a small but respected label specializing in bluegrass and other acoustic music, and the company's latest releases are some of its best.

Michelle Nixon & Drive are a slick-picking six-piece combo from Virginia that plays "Prairie Home Companion"-style bluegrass. Nixon has a major-league voice and her band is excellent, especially teen prodigy Jason Davis on banjo. Highlights on the album "It's My Turn" include Tom T. Hall's "Harlan" and the two-minute breakneck breakdown "Couch Potato."

"Synergy" pairs guitarist Jim Hurst and bassist Missy Raines, two Nashville, Tenn., session musicians who play bluesy folk. Hurst is the better singer, but Raines is remarkable on the bass, transforming the duo's sparse sound into an asset. Best is the instrumental "Cincinnati at Night," with Raines settling into a groove while Hurst's guitar never rises above a whisper.

And for Sunday morning there are The Churchmen, a Southern gospel bluegrass quintet from Virginia. "On the Journey Home" features seamless three- and four-part harmonies, as well as lickety-split licks on up-tempo tunes such as "Get Onboard" and "Going Up." The group is so eager for gigs that the liner notes include the cell phone numbers of two band members. Give them a call.

-- From wire reports