Billboard CD reviews: Robert Plant, Brian Wilson

ARTIST: ROBERT PLANT

ALBUM: BAND OF JOY

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Robert Plant may seem an unlikely Americana artist. But the educated know the original Band of Joy -- which he and future Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham played in, as well as Zep -- was profoundly influenced by what drifted across the pond. Plant's latest solo album, "Band of Joy," follows in the fertile vein of 2007's Grammy Award-winning "Raising Sand" with Alison Krauss. The new set incorporates an edgier, resonant kind of ambience from producer Buddy Miller, a more aggressive female vocal foil in Patty Griffin and (on several of the 12 tracks) a greater ensemble attitude. The material is just as fascinatingly diverse, from the trancey flow of Los Lobos' "Angel Dance" to the doo-wop-by-way-of-Nashville treatment of the Kelly Brothers' "I'm Falling in Love Again" and the swampy but spare groove that frames the mid-19th-century poem "Even This Shall Pass Away." A pair of Low songs -- "Silver Rider" and "Monkey" -- are solidly in the wheelhouse Plant is working here. And the Plant-Miller original "Central Two-O-Nine" is a train song so authentic in tone that it almost sounds like a Johnny Cash classic. Plant has steadfastly resisted a return to the Zep fold; "Band of Joy" makes us glad for that.

ARTIST: BRIAN WILSON

ALBUM: BRIAN WILSON REIMAGINES GERSHWIN (Walt Disney Records)

Brian Wilson says he doesn't really need to cover someone else's material. But if he's going to do so, he might as well choose one of the best. The Beach Boys mastermind's dip into the world of George and Ira Gershwin is a love's labor that makes plenty of sense and opens up at least a few of the tunes to illuminating interpretations. The star attractions, of course, are a pair of songs that Wilson and band member Scott Bennett finished from the Gershwin vaults: "The Like in I Love You" -- an outtake from the 1924 musical "Lady, Be Good!" -- is supple and shimmering, and "Nothing but Love," which dates back to 1929, is treated as a cheerful, guitar-driven rocker whose observation that "the only thing timeless is love" finds the common ground between the Gershwin and Wilson aesthetics. Wilson and company also rock up "I Got Rhythm," lend a doo-wop air to "I've Got a Crush on You," add samba flavor to "'S Wonderful" and make "They Can't Take That Away From Me" sound like a kissin' cousin to "California Girls." And Wilson's layered, a cappella renditions of "Rhapsody in Blue" are brief but sublime. It's wonderful, indeed.

ARTIST: JOHN MELLENCAMP

ALBUM: NO BETTER THAN THIS (Rounder Records)

It's so easy to get caught up in the mechanics of John Mellencamp's 25th album, "No Better Than This," that the music itself can get short shrift. That's understandable given the uniqueness of the set. It was made with a single microphone and a 55-year-old reel-to-reel recorder and recorded in a trio of historic locales: Memphis' Sun Studios, the San Antonio hotel room where Robert Johnson recorded and America's first black church in Savannah, Ga. It makes for a good story, and fortunately, "No Better Than This" sounds as good as it reads, with raw, in-your-face sonics that make it feel like Mellencamp is just a few feet away. The songs are intimate, thoughtful and rank with the best of his mature brand of folk-styled rock. The title track and "Each Day of Sorrow" kick with old-school rockabilly energy, but it's the spare, haunting songs like "Save Some Time to Dream," "A Graceful Fall" and "Love at First Sight" that leave the most lasting mark and best detail the "Clumsy Ol' World" Mellencamp draws with such vivid detail.

ARTIST: USHER

ALBUM: VERSUS (LaFace Records/JLG)

"Raymond v Raymond" may be the title of Usher's latest album, but it also mirrors what's happening on the R&B/hip-hop charts. The singer is competing with himself thanks to four songs -- three of which (No. 1 hit "There Goes My Baby," "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" and "Hot Tottie") appear on this sequel to "R v R." Comprising eight new songs plus "There Goes My Baby," the new set alternately bumps and throbs as a reinvigorated Usher further paves his comeback path. The release opens with the rhythm-drenched declaration "Love 'Em All." Adding their own special flavor to the proceedings are Jay-Z on "Hot Tottie," Bun B riding shotgun on "Get in My Car" and Usher protege Justin Bieber on a remix of his own hit "Somebody to Love." The real standout after "There Goes My Baby" and "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love," Usher's top 10 pop/club jam with Pitbull, is the shimmering, sexy groove "Lingerie," co-produced by the legendary Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis.

ARTIST: DANIEL CROS

ALBUM: LAS VUELTAS QUE DA LA VIDA (Rosazul)

Sufficiently seduced by Cuban music to study percussion in Havana, Daniel Cros, a veteran of Barcelona's rock scene, came home to form a band that includes Cuban musicians and record his latest album, "Las Vueltas Que da la Vida" (The Turns That Life Takes). If, on the opening cha-cha-cha, Cros' Catalan-accented Spanish is a dry accompaniment to the cocktail rhythm, he finds a better pairing on the next song, "De Par en Par," a more languid piano-backed bolero. The band keeps it tight as it runs through son, salsa and guaguanco, but Cros' vocals don't quite match the expectations those upbeat arrangements create. It's on the song "Tan Lejos, Tan Cerca" -- and other simply delivered ballads on the album -- that Cros best showcases his cosmopolitan talent for strong emotive songwriting.

ARTIST: KATIE MELUA

ALBUM: THE HOUSE (Dramatico Entertainment)

After three albums that established her as a successful British female artist, no one could blame Katie Melua for staying the course. But on her new album, "The House," Melua changes up dramatically, parting amicably with longtime collaborator Mike Batt and enlisting new producer William Orbit (Madonna, Blur) and such new writing partners as Guy Chambers, Rick Nowels and Lauren Christy. The ambient, moody specter of Kate Bush and Tori Amos hangs over these dozen tracks, to good effect. There's a madrigal touch on the sinister opening track, "I'd Love to Kill You"; an Eastern flavor for the first single, "The Flood"; and a burlesque pomp to "A Moment of Madness." "Plague of Love," "God on the Drums, Devil on the Bass" and "Twisted" are among the most forceful tracks Melua has ever recorded, while she brings a regal air to the bluesy folk treatment of Bill Monroe's "The One I Love Is Gone." With sophisticated grace and evocative lyricism, Melua has made a brave reinvention that raises her already lofty artistic bar.

ARTIST: WAVVES

ALBUM: KING OF THE BEACH (Fat Possum Records)

Nathan Williams, the man behind noise-pop band Wavves, tightens up his sound on the group's third album, "King of the Beach." Instead of the lo-fi, DIY approach he took on the act's last two releases, Williams recruited a permanent backing band and recorded in a proper studio for his new set. The result is a 12-song collection of washed-out summer tunes perfect for beach outings and late-night house parties. The punk-leaning "Post Acid" begins with pounding drums and heavy reverb that leads into a stomping guitar riff, while "Super Soaker" boasts a thrashy vibe reminiscent of Nirvana's "Territorial Pissings." (In Kurt Cobain-like form, Williams repeatedly screams toward the end of the latter, "But I still feel stupid.") In addition to its fast-paced punk tunes, "King of the Beach" also features a handful of mellow tracks with shimmering guitar lines and Brian Wilson-esque vocal layering, as heard on "When Will You Come" and "Baby Say Goodbye."

ARTIST: MIKE POSNER

ALBUM: 31 MINUTES TO TAKEOFF (J Records)

This recent Duke University grad recently hit the upper reaches of the Billboard Hot 100 with "Cooler Than Me," a slick club jam in which he pokes fun at a woman who keeps her emotions hidden behind her designer shades. Throughout "31 Minutes to Takeoff," Mike Posner's major-label debut after a pair of buzz-building 2009 mixtapes, he sounds as unflappable as the subject of his first hit, delivering shapely melodies in a breathy, low-key croon that makes Drake (or John Mayer) sound like Mr. Excitement. For the most part -- as in the song "Do U Wanna?," which rides an unlikely Ray LaMontagne sample, and "Please Don't Go," a bouncy disco-pop track co-produced by Dr. Luke's right-hand man, Benny Blanco -- the result provides some nice contrast with the amped-up likes of Ke$ha and Taio Cruz. Occasionally, though, mellow morphs into dreary: Closer "Falling," in which Posner invites an ex to "drive your high heel into my heart," stalls out on the runway.