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Kentucky's least country sons, now entirely removed from the Francophile disco of their first album (2002's pleasantly innocuous Le Funk), continue to mimic '80s new wave on their third. But without the strong vocals and volatile rock leanings that make the Killers and Interpol sound modern, Bring on the Comets is ultimately a bland regression.

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Architecture in Helsinki's fanciful pop patchwork has always been rooted in the playground, but their third album takes a giant step in a new direction. The Melbourne-based sextet mostly supplants their call-and-response giddiness with the hyper, guttural chanting of leader Cameron Bird (who conceived the songs while living apart from the group in a raucous Latino neighborhood in Brooklyn).

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After last year's Both Sides of the Gun, an ambitious double album split into snappy blues and pensive, symphonic soul, Ben Harper eases into a more fluid, evenly paced groove on his eighth LP.

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When the Ronettes walked in the rain, they barely noticed the drops; Nicole Atkins, however, sounds ready to drown. On her debut, the New Jersey singer/songwriter coolly distills the romanticism of '60s girl groups into dark, baleful country pop.

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Though he insists that "there is hate all around" ("Human Hands"), it's difficult to imagine lead Bowerbird Phil Moore getting miffed about it.

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With their second album, these Los Angeles malcontents come on with a dark dance-rock allure but never generate any big heat. Lion the Girl cycles through dirgelike, hallucinogenic guitar breaks and New Age synth-pep, forever constructing an eerie tension that never resolves.