Albums of the Week
Dean Wareham
“Dean Wareham”
★★★
The former singer-guitarist for Galaxie 500 and Luna, Wareham records with bassist-singer wife Britta Phillips as Dean & Britta, but this is a solo album for a reason — these songs have a flintier tone than Wareham’s usually do. It feels personal, not because he’s divulging deep secrets, but because he sounds like he’s thinking aloud: “What have I done with my life?” he asks in “Love Is Not a Roof Against the Rain,” and laments living in a “Holding Pattern.” But he doesn’t sound like a grump — and his sharp guitar parts lift even the darker moods.
Various Artists
“Divergent: Original Soundtrack”
★★½
Though it’s uneven, it’s hard not to hear the soundtrack of “Divergent” — Hollywood’s latest attempt to jump on “The Hunger Games” action-heroine YA-series bandwagon — as a definitive pop milestone, much the way the “Trainspotting” or “Tomb Raider” albums were. Here, EDM’s tendency toward moody soundtrack music is given its proper context, with tracks from Zedd, Skrillex and M83 full of widescreen effects; even the “rock” groups here (Tame Impala, Snow Patrol) sound more like deep backdrops. The album’s star is British singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding, whose longtime work with dance producers (she also dates Skrillex) guides the rest of the selections into similar territory.
Downloads of the Week
Miley Cyrus and Cedric Gervais
“Adore You (Remix)”
★★
French dance producer Gervais scored last year with his big, whooshing, empty-headed, not-terrible remix of Lana Del Ray’s “Summertime Sadness.” It’s clearly going to be his shtick for a while — and his pumped-up synth cheer for Miley, too, isn’t terrible. It’s pretty featureless, though.
Disclosure Feat. Mary J. Blige
“F for You”
★★★
A big guest star jumping on a hot track is nothing new, but Blige fits the jumpy London house-music brother-duo team’s single — only just perfectly. Neither she nor they alter what they do a bit; it’s just a good match, with Blige’s vocals as loose as their groove.
Young Money Feat. Euro, Birdman & Lil Wayne
“We Alright”
★½
This lead single from Lil Wayne’s Young Money crew album “Rise of an Empire” is exactly what you’d expect: moderate tempo, lots of turgid, unremitting self-regard, and a beat that sounds like the soundtrack to the old Nintendo game “Ghosts and Goblins.” Birdman still can’t rap, by the way.
Warning: Graphic content
Aloe Blacc
“Love Is the Answer”
★★½
Blacc, who sang Avicii’s huge global hit “Wake Me Up,” is a retro-soul man on his own. This track from his third album, big label debut “Lift Your Spirit,” is very mid-’70s Stevie Wonder: pillowy strings, gospel feel, a heavy Stevie tint to the vocal. But the words are pretty dumb.
Juanes
“La Luz”
★★★½
A Colombian singer-songwriter who used to front a metal band, Juanes (Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez) makes acoustic-driven pop-rock that’s immediately accessible even if you don’t know Spanish at all. This sharp, instantly memorable tune from “Loco de Amor,” his first album in four years, is measurably sharper than most pop right now.
Tensnake & Jacques Lu Cont Feat. Jamie Lidell
“Feel of Love”
★★★
It’s always a good idea to sound like early Prince, as this irresistible cut from Tensnake’s debut album, “Glow,” largely does. Singer Lidell doesn’t have Prince’s voice, but he’s jumpy and appealing. So is the track, which is festooned with cheesy disco synths. The groove is lean, though.