Inside Music: Consumer Guide

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Moby
"Last Night" (Mute)
There are cornier ways of keeping it old-school ("Everyday It's 1989," "I Love to Move in Here").

Justin Adams (with Juldeh Camara)
"Soul Science" (World Village)
Gambian griot adds his one-stringed ritti to desert-besotted British rocker's guitar for traditional wisdom and no less traditional diddleybeats ("Yerro Mama," Ya Ta Kaaya").

DJ Yoda
"The Amazing Adventures of DJ Yoda" (Antidote)
It's harder when you have to create the songs yourself, but Biz Markie and Tiny Tim help, as do the laugh lines ("Breakfast Cereal," "Tip-Toe").

Kid Koala
"Your Mom's Favorite DJ" (Ninja Tune)
Still the king of stand-up turntablism ("Left Side," "Right Side").

Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks
"Real Emotional Trash" (Matador)
A jam band for middle-aged neurotics who gather where most of their kind gather -- their living rooms ("Hopscotch Willie," "Dragonfly Pie").

The Ike Reilly Assassination
"We Belong to the Staggering Evening" (Rock Ridge Music)
Struggling artist realizes he has more money than the strugglers he writes about, and writes better as a result ("Valentine's Day in Juarez," "Broken Parakeet Blues").

Justice
"Cross" (Downtown/Ed Banger/Vice)
As dance music, not my idea of a good time, but as electronic pop, so much trickier, sillier and more kinetic than Kraftwerk ("Newjack," "D.A.N.C.E").

Madonna
"Hard Candy" (Warner Bros.)
OK, a middle-aged fitness nut can sing pop ditties just like middle-aged lushes could once sing pop standards, with this requirement -- a little help from Timbo and Kanye ("4 Minutes," "Beat Goes On").

Craze
"Fabriclive.38" (Fabric)
Hard electro hip-hop mix devolves into squelchy electro scratch mix -- or evolves if you like, it takes all kinds (Cool Kids, "Black Mags"; the Pase Rock, "Lindsay Lohan's Revenge [Klever Remix]").

Drexel
"River of Chowder" (Dayton, Ohio)
One guy you never heard of's bereft, derelict, falsetto tales of southern Ohio over another's rolling piano and whatever else comes to hand ("Big John's House," "Practicing Preachers").

El Compa Chuy
"Alacrana Lavada" (Norte)
Corridos with nutty polka accordion and crazy-ass tuba -- which aficionados tell me gets even crazier sometimes ("Por Algo Soy El Patron," "Junior Terrazas").

Robyn
"Robyn" (Konichiwa/Cherrytree/Interscope)
The sucky ballad crossed over, so enjoy this Euro-Madonna's nasty side while it's still there ("Handle Me," "Cobrastyle").

Carrie Underwood
"Carnival Ride" (Arista Nashville/19)
Nashvillians with a track record rarely lack for songs, but note that she wrote several of the liveliest ones herself ("The More Boys I Meet," "Last Name").

God-Des and She
"Stand Up" (Sony Twist)
Lesbian hip-hoppers who are better at sex than politics but you have to admire for caring about both ("Lick It," "Hollywood").

Kylie Minogue
"X" (Virgin)
An especially happy birthday to the Aussie ex-ingenue, who just turned 40 and can still credibly sing, "Boy, you got it got it, you got me feeling crazy 'bout my body" ("Nu-di-ty," "Speakerphone").

Remy Ma
"The BX Files" (Sure Shot)
If your records weren't all that, maybe you'd have anger management issues, too ("Influentials," "Rapid Fire").

CHOICE CUTS

Lil Mama
"Lip Gloss"
"College"
("VYP: Voice of the Young People" [Jive])

Flo Rida (Feat. T-Pain)
"Low"

Missy Elliott
"Ching-A-Ling"
"Shake Your Pom Pom"
("Step Up 2 the Streets" [Atlantic])

Dolly Parton
"Backwoods Barbie"
("Backwoods Barbie" [Dolly])

Mariah Carey
"Touch My Body"
("E=MC2" [Island])