CD Report

k-os
JOYFUL REBELLION
Astralwerks
`It's the end of the jiggy era," k-os declared on his debut, "Exit," one of the best rap albums of 2002, and if his proclamation has yet to come true, it's not for his lack of effort. For this daring rapper and producer, hip-hop equals freedom, unshackled by conventions, expectations, or trends. As good as his first CD was, this album is a major leap forward -- more ambitious, more flooded with pure sound, while never succumbing to egotistical bloat. Reveling in the delirious musicality of live instrumentation -- flamenco guitars on the dramatic opening track, "EMCEE Murdah," swirling strings accenting the disco soul of "Man I Used To Be," and slap bass and sinewy sax on "Crabbuckit" -- every song here is a gem. A fine singer (there's a faint echo of Sam Cooke in his phrasing) as well as a rapper, k-os also plays guitar and keyboards, seamlessly blending various styles such as the straight hip-hop of "B-Boy Stance," the folk leanings of "Hallelujah," and "Dirty Water," which sounds like a lost N.E.R.D. track. Lyrically, each track is a challenge to other hip-hop artists to step up their game, and for young people, in particular, to be true to themselves. Shunning the materialism and mayhem of most mainstream hip-hop, this Toronto rapper makes music so much smarter than your average, everyday MC, he instantly reminds listeners why they fell in love with hip-hop in the first place.
RENÉE GRAHAM

The Arcade Fire
FUNERAL
Merge Records
If you've never heard Montreal's the Arcade Fire, the band's first full-length album, "Funeral," will sound like the second coming of the Cure. To those who have followed the group's ascent from underground sensations to newly signed Merge Records artists, the debut is strong, but perhaps too self-consciously hip, college rock. Granted, there's a lot of good stuff to digest: accordions, xylophones, melancholy guitars reminiscent of stellastarr*, Win Butler's histrionic vocals, and pensive lyrics in English and French. The album takes its title from the fact that many of the band members' relatives have recently died, including Win and William Butler's grandfather, pedal-steel pioneer Alvino Rey. Don't mistake it for a sad album, though; its '80s-rock sensibilities are more attuned to what you might hear at ManRay on Saturday nights. It's also full of refreshing surprises, from the ELO-worthy electronic conclusion of "Crown of Love" to the tender duet between Win Butler and his wife, Régine Chassagne, on "Une Année Sans Lumière." Chassagne has ironed out the Kate Bush-like caterwauling that made her a distinctive force on earlier songs, and she's every inch an ice queen on "Haiti," a sly, retro salute to her birthplace. Any lingering doubts that the Arcade Fire will be a huge success are dispelled by "Rebellion (Lies)," a rocker that kick-starts with bass and piano and only gets faster and more urgent over the next five minutes. College rock's future stars? Check. The Arcade Fire plays at T.T. the Bear's Place on Nov. 12.
JAMES REED

Joe Nichols
REVELATION
Universal South
Joe Nichols's latest may lack the sheer force of his 2002 debut, but it exudes an equally striking sense of confidence and self-assurance. There's a less-is-more approach in the choice of material, song arrangement, and Nichols's use of his one-of-a-kind baritone that is even more apparent than it was on his first outing. That puts him utterly at odds with the frenetic, rocked-up character of much of today's mainstream country, but it also serves to separate him from the latest wave of young country traditionalists with whom he is usually grouped. "Don't Ruin It for the Rest of Us" is an exemplary hard shuffle. "What's a Guy Gotta Do," which he co-wrote, is another up-tempo song that comes laced with Cajun flourishes. But the rest of this record's nine songs are various shades of slow, from leisurely rumination ("The Shade") to deep regret ("If I Ever Get Her Back"). His choice of covers is equally considered: He nails the Gene Watson hard-country classic "Farewell Party" and invests the Iris Dement by way of Merle Haggard song "No Time to Cry" with a palpable weariness that reflects his emotions over the recent death of his father. Nichols is young, but he's already making country music that's built for the long run.
STUART MUNRO

Jake Brennan & the Confidence Men
LOVE AND BOMBS
Yep Roc Records
It's lucky for local singer/songwriter Jake Brennan that the blues are a state of mind rather than a condition of one's surroundings. Otherwise, the good fortune he's enjoyed this year -- culminating in tonight's CD release show for his band's debut full-length, "Love and Bombs" -- might be enough to erode his knack for crafting alt-country blues with an emotional resonance beyond his years. Since leaving hardcore band Cast Iron Hike to tackle more nuanced, personal music, the son of local roots musician Dennis Brennan has won the WBCN Rock 'n' Roll Rumble and hooked up with renowned local producer Paul Kolderie, who urged him to develop his songwriting chops before recording. The result is a brassy, bluesy statement of purpose that finds Brennan and company equally at home on the tough, mournful ballads and the honky-tonk rockers. Standouts include "Believe Me," a swinging, mandolin-laced love song that finds Brennan's heartbroken Casanova vocals stretching to a soulful twang, and "She Got Everything and You Got Me," a stripped-down confessional with the quiet dignity of early Springsteen. The best of the rave-ups include "Annie May," with its shuffling beat and tart, hiccupping guitar, and a cover of "It Was Always So Easy (To Find an Unhappy Woman Until I Started Looking for Mine)," which bursts with growling guitar and barrelhouse piano. This is one case of the blues that's cause to celebrate. Jake Brennan & the Confidence Men play tonight at the Middle East Upstairs.
SARAH TOMLINSON

The Orb
BICYCLES & TRICYCLES
Sanctuary
In a time when every kid with a laptop and 75 bucks' worth of software considers himself an electronic music artiste, it's good to have a model of the real thing. The latest US release by the Orb is a gold mine of beat electronica. As the UK kings of ambient house music, main man Alex Paterson and his Orb cohorts eschew overamped flash, instead crafting groove and mood. Less densely glossy and more sunny than previous efforts, "Bicycles & Tricycles" proves that the Orb can still take us on a pretty good mind-and-body trip -- even if it does travel to musical domains and dance floors we've been to before in the Orb's 15 years. It chugs through anthemic space throbs ("Hell's Kitchen," a standout) and trance-dance breakbeats, then glistens, pulses, and dives deep into chilling clouds of brass and bells, setting up a massive, Eno-like ascension into ambient heavens on "Dilmun." This is hypnotic stuff, as captivating as psychedelic soundscapes get -- even though a couple of missteps into bouncy electro-pop and circus-clown dub almost kill the mood.

TRISTRAM LOZAW