Sean Daly's top CD picks

By Sean Daly, Times Pop Music Critic
Published June 24, 2007

Queens of the Stone Age
Album: Era Vulgaris (Interscope)
In stores: Now
Why we care: QOTSA leader Josh Homme might as well have a mullet. He's an old-school hard-rocker who builds his fuzzed-out songs one mastodonic riff at a time. His albums are as comfortable as fake-wood paneling, a 12-pack of Schlitz and crackling vinyl. You wanna rock? The Queens are money in the bank.
Why we like it: Homme is known for inviting buddies (such as Foo Fighter Dave Grohl) into the studio. Here he calls on the Strokes' Julian Casablancas and Screaming Tree Mark Lanegan to raise a ruckus. But you never forget that this is Homme's party: the stuttering guitars (3's & 7's), the macho harmonies (Turnin' on the Screw), the deliciously awkward romance (Make It Wit Chu).
Reminds us of: That stoner from high school who was smarter than his leather wristbands let on.
Download these: Battery Acid and Make It Wit Chu
Grade: B+

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Ibrahim Ferrer
Album: Mi Sueno (World Circuit/Nonesuch)
In stores: Now
Why we care: Remember when the world was in love with the Buena Vista Social Club, the 1998 movie and musical movement dedicated to Cuban grooves of the '50s? The featured singer and star was the late Ibrahim Ferrer, whose voice and style oozed Havana cool. Before he died in 2005, Ferrer was working on this album of boleros, intense love songs typically performed by macho male singers.
Why we like it: Buena Vista buddies Manuel Galban (guitar) and Ruben Gonzalez (piano) help out Ferrer, whose phrasing is passionate but also devastatingly smooth. He's in pain - but he also has his eye on that cute girl at the bar. This is cocktail music, this is make-out music, this is music for a long, lonely night.
Reminds us of: Mojitos, and keep 'em coming.
Download these: Dos Almas and Uno
Grade: A

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King Wilkie
Album: Low Country Suite (Zoe)
In stores: Now
Why we care: This Charlottesville, Va., six-piece is hovering just below the radar, but with any luck, that won't last long. Merging bluegrass pluck, country sway and subtle rock oomph, these cinematic drama Kings are all about long goodbyes and fleeting hellos.
Why we like it: Singers John McDonald and Reid Burgess often share the mike, harmonizing like a couple of down-south Everly Brothers. But picker Ted Pitney (National guitar, lap steel, acoustic, slide, you name it) is the secret weapon here, an inventive player who matches the singers' sad shifts with a weary Southern blues.
Reminds us of: Dylan's Nashville Skyline
Download these: The Raising of the Patriarch and Millie's Song
Grade: B

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SONG OF THE WEEK
Perry Farrell's Satellite Party
Song: Kinky
Album: Ultra Payloaded (Sony)
In stores: Now
Why we care: A few years ago, at the Coachella fest in the Cali desert, Perry Farrell holed up in a tent and played DJ. The music the Jane's Addiction frontman made was hot, scary, sexy. The throbbing guitars ruffled your fauxhawk; the booming beats turned the kids into one grinding mass. Kinky is the ravey result of that experiment.
Why we like it: The raging guitar riffs come courtesy of Nuno Bettencourt, whom cheese-metal fans might remember from the band Extreme, which went No. 1 with the hit More Than Words. Kinky isn't just a freaky dance banger; it's a comeback story.
Reminds us of: Caligula with glow sticks
Song grade: B+

Sean Daly can be reached at sdaly@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8467. His Pop Life blog is at blogs.tampabay.com/popmusic.

[Last modified June 21, 2007, 13:10:58]