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Scissor Sisters, "Night Work" (Universal) Rating: 2/4 Part performance-art project, part burlesque troupe, and part musical homage to the underrated artistry of the disco era, New York’s provocatively named Sister Sisters transcended the potentially schtick

Big Boi, "Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty" (Purple Ribbon/Def Jam) Rating: 3/4Antwan “Big Boi” Patton generally is portrayed as the more down-to-earth half of the multi-platinum-selling hip-hop duo Outkast, the streetwise rapper who balances t

The Roots, "How I Got Over" (Def Jam) Rating: 4/4For nearly two decades, the Roots have justified their oft-cited reputation as the best live band in hip-hop, though that title pays short shrift to the wild musical creativity and inspiring revolutionary themes of their

Wolf Parade, "Expo 86" (Sub Pop) Rating: 3.5/4 Fans of Wolf Parade long have championed this indie-rock quartet from Montreal for pursuing a modern brand of melodically infectious but rhythmically challenging art-rock akin to the New Wave-era best from Peter Gabriel, D

Eminem, "Recovery" (Aftermath/Interscope) Rating: 1.5/4 Coming from a guy who consistently whines about or rails against anyone who dares to criticize or “down” him, the most notable lines on the sixth major-label album from self-constructed hip-hop b

Drake, "Thank Me Later" (Universal/Motown) Rating: 3.5/4  If the soul-sapping seductiveness of crack and cocaine -- selling them and consuming them -- was the major theme inspiring much of the best hip-hop from the '90s until early in the new millennium, an a

Band of Horses, "Infinite Arms" (Brown Records/Fat Possum/Columbia) Rating: 3/4Formed in Seattle, based in South Carolina, and previously a partnership between vocalist/main man Ben Bridwell and Mat Brooke, Band of Horses is now a quintet on its third album, with