Albums Of The Week
BLOOD ORANGE
“Cupid Deluxe”
★★★½
Blood Orange main man Dev Hynes was recently invited to submit songs for Britney Spears’ forthcoming album, but his offerings were refused. How she must regret that now, because “Cupid Deluxe” is the work of an immeasurable talent. Themed loosely around NYC’s LGBT community, Hynes’ second album as Blood Orange is an intimate and frequently beautiful reinterpretation of ’80s soul, funk and R&B. “You’re Not Good Enough” is worthy of Prince, the come-hither crooning on “Chosen” revives the spirit of Teddy Pendergrass, and with “Always Let U Down,” Hynes takes a song by the forgotten Britpop band Mansun and miraculously transforms it into something that sounds like a lost Soul II Soul gem. You won’t hear many better albums than this all year — and Britney’s certainly won’t be one of them.
DAUGHTRY
“Baptized”
½
Ever since he first appeared on “American Idol” back in 2006, Chris Daughtry has been feted for his impressive vocal range, but seven years on, those lungs still aren’t powerful enough to drown out his flimsy songwriting skills. His fourth album, “Baptized,” is substandard at best and frequently falls below even that level. Leadoff single “Waiting For Superman” is a weak attempt to inject an electro influence into the band’s haggard alt-rock, and hearing Daughtry sing “boom-boom-boom” to illustrate the lovers’ war within “Battleships” is the sort of dopey pandering that wouldn’t even be found on a “Sesame Street” album. And yes, there is the obligatory string-laden piano ballad in the shape of “Broken Arrows,” which makes you want to break more than just arrows. With so few redeeming qualities, “Baptized” is an album that is unquestionably going straight to hell.
Downloads Of The Week
LORDE
“Everybody Wants to Rule the World”
★★
This teen from New Zealand is still sitting pretty at the top of the chart with “Royals,” but her contribution to the new “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” soundtrack is an entirely different beast. She reworks Tears For Fears’ hit into a dark and forbidding death march. But while it’s an impressive tonal transformation, it’s hard to imagine why anyone would want to listen to it twice.
LILY ALLEN
“Hard Out Here”
★
The Brit’s comeback has been causing all kinds of controversy due to the content of the accompanying video and the way it spears the music business’ ingrained sexism. But that debate has obscured the song itself, which features powder-puff melody, horribly auto-tuned vocals and tinny production. It’s the perfect way to kill what could have been a good conversation.
STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS
“Lariat”
★★½
“We grow up listening to the music from the best decade ever,” sings the former Pavement frontman on the Jicks’ new single. Clearly, he knows his fans pine for the indie-rock glory days of the ’90s. The nostalgia certainly hits home on this jangly little number from their forthcoming album “Wig Out At Jagbags,” which is due Jan. 7 and is already the best album title of 2014.
METRONOMY
“I’m Aquarius”
★★★
The electro-pop group has risen to success partly due to their force as a live act, but the party atmosphere isn’t so apparent in the British band’s comeback single. “I’m Aquarius” (taken from the new album “Love Letters,” due in March) is a far more minimal affair, but has a wonderfully seductive power thanks to singer Joe Mount and his soulful purrs.