SOUND CHECK.

LUCINDA WILLIAMS: "West" (Lost Highway) - Three stars

Williams goes over some well-trod ground but also explores new sonic and emotional territory on her first album in four years. Informed by the death of her mother and another inevitable, shattering breakup, the sense of painful loss is as palpable as ever, but more expansive on tracks such as the lovingly mournful "Mama You Sweet" and wailing electric spiritual lament "Unsuffer Me."

String sections and Bill Frisell's jazzy guitar arabesques build out nicely from Williams' basic country-blues-rough-rock sound. And her longing ballads are as poetically potent as ever, though a stab at free-associative social criticism ("What If") is but an echo of "World Without Tears," and the raunchy kiss-off rant "Come On" packs little of the carnal ache heard on earlier foul-mouthed masterworks such as "Essence" and "Those Three Days."

-- Bob Strauss

AS OF MONTREAL: "Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?" (Polyvinyl) - Three and one half stars

As Of Montreal's Kevin Barnes sings: "I spent the winter on the verge of a total breakdown while living in Norway." Know the feeling -- and we've never been to Norway. This remarkable indie quintet -- which, naturally, is from Georgia -- has made an irresistible new album that somehow puts together Eurodisco, atonal guitar, cheerfully gloomy lyrics and some unexpectedly bracing off-kilter melodies for a cartoony set that's as addictive as Pez. The track we can't get enough of is the monolithic 12-minute "The Past Is a Grotesque Animal," a clever number that namechecks Georges Bataille, the '20s essayist and noted French loony, and sounds like the Gang of Four on Casios instead of guitars. "Hissing Fauna" is already one of the best discs of the year.

-- Fred Shuster

HARDKANDY: "How Do You Do Nothing?" (Catskills) - Three and one half stars

This seductive downtempo set came our way after exposure on a satellite chill-out channel. Drawing from dub, soul, ambient and pop, the imaginative duo from the U.K.'s thriving seaside town of Brighton make a warm, dreamy noise that reels you in with incisive melodies and superb performances. Two Hardkandy tracks that easily stand among the best of Air, Zero 7, Fila Brazillia and Massive Attack are "Big Sand," a massively gorgeous number with inspirational guitar work, and the very soulful "Standstill." Both "How Do You Do Nothing?" and its nearly-as-good sequel "Last to Leave" are available in various forms from www.catskillsrecordscom.

-- F.S.

PACHA MASSIVE: "All Good Things" (Nacional) - Three stars

If you tune into KCRW, you've probably heard the funky fusion of this Bronx-based duo -- Dominican-born Nova and Colombian-born Maya. Together they are Pacha Massive, which takes its name from Pachamama, meaning Mother Earth. Its clubby grooves are layered in cumbia, palo, '70s soul, hip-hop, dancehall and dub -- not unlike the urban melange of L.A.'s own Ozomatli and Jurassic 5, or the virtual British band Gorillaz. But the mood here is after-hours. Funky flutes punctuate a soulful "Oye Mira." On "All Good Things," solarized guitar chords bounce off reggae beats. And a haunting "La Verdolaga" leaves you wanting more. In stores Tuesday.

-- Sandra Barrera

ALKALINE TRIO: "Remains" (Vagrant) - Three and one half stars

For its rarities set, Chicago's Alkaline Trio has unearthed non-album B-sides, songs from split releases with other bands, compilation-only cuts and live tracks. The band has also thrown in a 25-minute documentary and various videos on a bonus DVD. The results here act as an ideal intro to the trio's lean, adrenalin-fueled pop-punk. High points include an unusual cover of Berlin's "Metro" and the powerful punch of "Warbrain."

-- Sam Gnerre

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(1) no caption (Lucinda Williams)

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