Downloads of the Week
5 Seconds of Summer
“18″
★★
Aging punk rockers will probably sneer their way through 5 Seconds of Summer’s self-titled debut album, but these Aussies aren’t pretending they’re authentic. Instead, they’re happy to write silly, sugar-coated power pop songs like “18” about lusting after older women.
“She’s got a naughty tattoo in a place that I want to get to/But my mom still drives me to school.” If those lyrics don’t make you chuckle, then there’s no hope for you.
Common feat. Jhene Aiko
“Blak Majik”
★★ ½
Sounds like Common has taken a small leaf out of Kanye’s book on this track from his latest album, “Nobody Smiling.”
An abrasive sample and Jhené Aiko’s unsettling vocals underscore Common’s surprisingly aggressive delivery, all of which will feel like a sharp jolt to those who expected the 42-year-old Chicago rapper to settling into the middle-aged comfort zone.
The Raveonettes
“Sisters”
★★★
Decamping to Los Angeles hasn’t affected this former New York duo’s ability to write great songs. Their new album, “Pe’ahi,” is full of blissful noise and “Sisters” is where their searing guitars and serene boy-girl harmonies meet to maximum effect.
They’ve made a career out of embedding ’60s girl-group melodies into My Bloody Valentine-style fuzz, but it’s a trick that still brings excellent results.
The Drums
“Magic Mountain”
★★★
A few years ago, the Drums were pegged as indie-rock’s next big thing. Judging by their first new music since 2011, the New York duo’s time could still come.
“Magic Mountain” is a riotous bolt from the blue, mixing furious Devo guitar riffs and singer Jonny Pierce’s manic chanting, which makes him sounds like a dead ringer for Jane’s Addiction’s Perry Farrell. Hopefully their new album “Encyclopedia” contains more of the same.
Albums of the Week
La Roux
“Trouble in Paradise”
★★★★
“Trouble in Paradise” may have been born out of immense personal strife and uncertainty, but La Roux has returned from the verge of oblivion with one of the best albums of 2014. Virtually every track comes complete with chart-ready hooks, but this time, the British act skillfully expands its synth-pop framework.
Buoyant opener “Uptight Downtown” has a classy hint of Duran Duran; the multi-layered strings, pianos and vocal harmonies of “Paradise Is You” are overwhelmingly beautiful; and the emotional power of the album’s centerpiece, “Let Me Down Gently,” is enough to floor you. There’s no time to convalesce, though, because the only normal reaction to hearing “Trouble in Paradise” is to want to hear it again and again. And again.