On their fantastic third album, Set Yourself on Fire, Stars build cerebral torch songs out of boy-girl vocals, strings, synths, guitars and the occasional French horn.
Start here for an action-packed entree to the genre's rougher pleasures.
The first thing that hits you about the songs is their intelligent design, from the metallic-Cars echo of "Bombs Below" to the son-of-Nirvana charge in "On All Fours." But without the hell-bent revolutionary zeal, Ahead of the Lions would sound like empty victory.
Sounding mainstream but thinking indie, Anniemal comes packed with both instant surface fizz and quirky finesse that sustains repeated listenings.
Even in duets with Rufus Wainwright and Boy George, Antony is the dominant voice of solitude and agonized waiting.
Thunder, Lightning, Strike was hailed as a pop masterpiece when it came out in the U.K. late last year, but clearing all the samples held up its U.S. release until now. Wait no longer.
The problem with You Could Have It So Much Better is, as with so many second albums, consistency.
His wordy narratives get hazy at times, but Sunday succeeds as a whirlwind tour through an overstuffed brain.
The Mars Volta's second album is an exhilarating transgression: concussive, nonlinear rhythms; mad-dog guitar algebra; bloody-nightmare suites sung in bilingual free verse. In short, the beastly spawn of Radiohead's OK Computer and Rush's 2112.
At its reckless best, which is a lot, Mezmerize is thrilling confrontation, a graphic reflection of a nation tearing itself apart in anger, fear and guilt.
That exhilarating directness gives Hypnotize a distinct edge over the more mannered theater of Mezmerize.
What makes this set such a godsend, nearly fifty years late, is that we hear this brief legendary partnership at its best in a concert-hall setting, in stunning-for-its-day fidelity.
More than any previous Sleater-Kinney record, The Woods reflects the classic-rock undercurrent that runs through the punk heroines' live shows.
M.I.A.’s long-awaited full-length debut, Arular, is every bit as stunning as “Galang”: weird, playful, unclassifiable, sexy, brilliantly addictive.
Not all of Massacre is as immediately catchy as Get Rich, but it's close.
Devils and Dust is ... as immediate and troubling as this morning's paper.
A Bigger Bang is just a straight-up, damn fine Rolling Stones album, with no qualifiers or apologies necessary for the first time in a few decades.
He steps up his lyrical game, shows off his epic production skills, reaches higher, pushes harder and claims the whole world of music as hip-hop turf.