Billboard CD Reviews: U2, Neko Case

U2 has been so reliable for so long that even its occasional missteps are fascinating, like a master French chef suddenly taking up sushi.

ARTIST: U2

ALBUM: NO LINE ON THE HORIZON (Interscope Records)

NEW YORK (Billboard) - U2 has been so reliable for so long that even its occasional missteps are fascinating, like a master French chef suddenly taking up sushi. Since 2000's "All That You Can't Leave Behind," the band has played it almost completely straight down the middle, with satisfying results. This time, U2 has it both ways. "Get On Your Boots" and "Stand Up Comedy" are big, visceral rockers. But there are also intriguing stylistic experiments like the seven-minute soul ballad "Moment of Surrender"; the gang vocals of "Unknown Caller"; the weary-sounding, chorus-free "Cedars of Lebanon"; and the Middle Eastern-flavored "Fez -- Being Born," inspired by Morocco. Digesting the blend takes some time, but the best moments offer that immediacy, as on the opening punch of the groovy title track and the chiming "Magnificent."

ARTIST: NEKO CASE

ALBUM: MIDDLE CYCLONE (Anti-)

Indie rock's favorite (and most prolific) redheaded woman has never sounded more assured than she does on this solo-billed set, a soaring, brisk rumination on love and other matters that comes with a dusty tinge befitting its Arizona roots. (Bonus: It also sports an early candidate for best album cover of 2009.) Case inhabits her various incarnations with enviable assurance, turning up wonderfully aggressive one minute and feisty the next. But she turns the lights low for "The Pharoahs," where she casts herself as a "blue blue baby," and the album's loveliest moment, a wispy take on Harry Nilsson's gorgeous "Don't Forget Me" that makes you sort of obsessed with her melancholy. Case brings along her traditional core band here, as well as guests that include M. Ward, Los Lobos and a few fellow New Pornographers, but never for one minute can you take your eyes off the woman in the spotlight.

ARTIST: RAUL MALO

ALBUM: LUCKY ONE (Fantasy Records)

Raul Malo hasn't released an album of his own songs in eight years, but he's hardly been idle. In fact, the former Mavericks frontman's two ambitious covers albums -- 2006's "You're Only Lonely" and 2007's "After Hours" -- formed a kind of two-session master class whose impact on "Lucky One" cannot be overstated. Produced by Los Lobos' Steve Berlin, who also helmed "Today," Malo's 2001 solo debut, the 12 tracks straddle genre lines and echo many of Malo's influences. Roy Orbison's ghost hangs over the airy "Crying for You," while "You Always Win" would fit comfortably into the Rat Pack's repertoire. Latin flavors slip into the gentle "Rosalie" and the brass-pumped title track. The subtle country inflections of "One More Angel" and the album-closing "So Beautiful" remind us where Malo comes from. But the real virtue of "Lucky One," as on all of his previous efforts, is Malo's voice, a full, rich tenor that conveys dramatic emotional sweep without gratuitously emotive technique. It was nice hearing those vocals applied to other people's songs during the past few years, but it's good to hear him singing his own again.

ARTIST: THIN LIZZY

ALBUM: STILL DANGEROUS (VH1 Classics)

Taken from a recently unearthed 1977 performance at Philadelphia's Tower Theater, "Still Dangerous" does a great job of highlighting the Irish rock quartet's live chops. The late singer/bassist Phil Lynott's melodies and the dual-guitar interplay of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson hold up well after 32 years as they road-test songs that would appear on 1977's "Bad Reputation" album. But the pacing of the performance is odd, with their biggest hits ("Jailbreak," "Boys Are Back in Town," "Dancing in the Moonlight") front-loaded on the first half of the album. And all but two of the songs ("Massacre" and "Opium Trail") are also on the 1978 concert masterpiece "Live and Dangerous." The album is a good showcase of a band firing on all cylinders, but likely will hold the most appeal for completists.

ARTIST: LOS FABULOSOS CADILLACS

ALBUM: LA LUZ DEL RITMO (Nacional Records)

After a nearly 10-year absence from the studio, Argentina's beloved ska-rock-Latin fusionists par excellence are back with a collection of new tracks and reworked classics. The album is essentially a party favor to go with the first LFC tour in several years, and while it's of minor importance to their pedigree, there are some pleasures here. The new originals are fine melodic pop, except for the upbeat title track, which recalls the Cadillacs' trademark energetic tropicalia. The best of the redone versions are the whacked-out cumbia "Padre Nuestro" and the reggae track "Muy, Muy Temprano," with a bright brass jam that feels like a leisurely stroll on the beach. The Cadillacs' Spanish version of "Should I Stay or Should I Go" by the Clash is priceless.

ARTIST: DOMINICK FARINACCI

ALBUM: LOVERS, TALES & DANCES (E1 Music/Koch)

A former teenage protege of Wynton Marsalis, trumpeter Dominick Farinacci is a Cleveland-raised product of Juilliard's jazz program. After releasing six albums in Japan, he make his U.S. debut with this set. The collection, produced by veteran pop-rock craftsman Russ Titelman, is meant to express the 25-year-old's global influences. He offers clearly enunciated, mellow take on tunes by Astor Piazzolla (Argentina), Ivan Lins (Brazil), Jacques Brel (France), Ryuichi Sakamoto (Japan), Petar Lyondev (Bulgaria) and such Americans as Billie Holiday, Quincy Jones and, daringly for such a smooth, disciplined player, Ornette Coleman. On the more adventurous tunes (Holiday's "Don't Explain," Coleman's "Lonely Woman") he's helped a great deal by the coaxing playfulness of veteran saxophonist Joe Lovano. His own "Vision," which also highlights pianist Kenny Barron, is deliberate, dramatic and seductive.

ARTIST: CHRIS CORNELL

ALBUM: SCREAM (Mosley Music/Interscope Records)

The oft-delayed blend of Chris Cornell's grunge-soul growl and producer Timbaland's percolating computer grooves, "Scream" is no less bizarre than its team-up suggests. Sometimes it's good bizarre: "Never Far Away" throbs with a dark drama not unlike the kind Cornell brought to his 2007 cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean." Other times it's bad bizarre: With its layered harmony vocals and chintzy Middle Eastern trimmings, "Take Me Alive" sounds like it should be credited to the Pussycat Dudes. Throughout "Scream," though, you have to admire Cornell and Timbaland's conviction: The music never gives off the whiff of desperation, even when it probably should.

ARTIST: VARIOUS ARTISTS

ALBUM: INDIA (Putumayo)

This latest noteworthy compilation from Putumayo features a number of India's most celebrated musicians, including A.R. Rahman, who just received best original score and best song Academy Awards for his musical contributions to the film "Slumdog Millionaire." Several of the artists here have a Bollywood connection, including Bombay Jayashri, a singer raised in the Carnatic vocal tradition of southern India. Her graceful song "Zara Zara" opens the album. Rahman wrote and sings "Tere Bina," from the Bollywood film "Guru," with female vocalist Chinmayee, and it's a powerful and poignant performance. Deepak Ram, a master of the bansuri flute, works a beautifully nuanced piece -- "Ganesha" -- accompanied by guitarist Eduardo Niebla. This album is a perfect companion for Putumayo's first book publishing effort, also titled "India."