record reviews

The Darkness

Album: “Hot Cakes” (Wind-Up)

Grade: B

In the opening lines of “Every Inch of You,” the first track on The Darkness’ new album “Hot Cakes,” Justin Hawkins laments his past misfortunes: “Oh baby I was a loser/Several years on the dole/An Englishman with a very high voice.”

But that loser has made that very high voice work for him as the reformed glam rockers release their third studio album.

“Hot Cakes” just exudes fun. It seems to wipe away a period of discord during which the band broke up and its members started other projects. You can almost see the lanky rockers jumping around, causing havoc on stage.

“Nothin’s Gonna Stop Us” has a feel-good 1980s rocking chorus and guitar solos you can imagine being played atop a huge speaker in a stadium.

It’s a song that’s perfect for warming up a Lady Gaga crowd, something The Darkness will do on her world tour.

As the album progresses to “With a Woman,” it becomes lyrically more somber and loses the cocky edge that has defined previous releases.

Hawkins muses on a failed relationship, but still manages a Darknessesque squeal at the end.

However, this love song isn’t as strong as other romantic ditties such as “Love is Only a Feeling” on the quartet’s 2003 debut “Permission to Land.”

The album stumbles somewhat when Hawkins isn’t using his voice to its full range and sings bland lyrics about banal domesticities, making cups of tea and getting taxis.

— Sian Watson, Associated Press

TREY SONGZ

Album: “Chapter V”

Grade: B-

Trey Songz seemingly wants to please everyone on “Chapter V” (Atlantic).

He’s got his well-crafted swaggering songs that show off most of his A- level guests, including Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Meek Mill and Diddy, but end up kind of demeaning.

(In “2 Reasons,” which features T.I., Songz repeats a derogatory term for women so many times it’s like a mantra.)

And he’s got his soaring soul ballads designed to win those women back — including the ’70s throwback “Without a Woman” and the rockish anthem “Simply Amazing.”

It’s the kind of pandering you’d expect from a newbie on “Chapter 1,” but for “Chapter 5,” it’s just lame hedging.

— Glenn Gamboa, Newsday

Owl City

Album: “The Midsummer Station” (Republic Records)

Grade: D

Owl City’s “The Midsummer Station” sounds like the soundtrack for one of those Nickelodeon or Disney TV movies you either enjoyed as a tween or endured as an adult. With generic pop-rock songs, it makes for passable entertainment, but ultimately it’s formulaic and forgettable.

It’s a far cry from Owl City’s breakout hit, 2009’s “Fireflies.” As grating as that song may have been to some, its quirky charm made it stand out from the rest of the pop pack.

With this new album, Adam Young, the man behind the Owl City moniker, goes for a sound that we’ve heard countless times on top 40 radio: Upbeat grooves that attempt to have an anthemic feel, with a little bit of dance-synth thrown in for good measure.

It doesn’t help matters that Young’s voice is defined by its lack of soul. Carly Rae Jepsen provides the rare spark that lifts “Good Time,” while ballad “Silhouette” is one of the rare songs that makes you feel something, albeit melancholy.

But in general, “The Midsummer Station” doesn’t generate much emotion, from either its main performer — or its listeners.

— Nekesa Mumbi Moody, AP

World Famous Headliners

Album: “World Famous Headliners” (Big Yellow Dog Music)

Grade: A

Three singers. Three songwriters. Three guitarists. That should be three strikes against the World Famous Headliners.

Instead, the chemistry created in this collaboration is captivating.

Big Al Anderson, Shawn Camp and Pat McLaughlin — with plenty of help from bassist Michael Rhodes and drummer Greg Morrow — have made an album that justifies the band’s hyperbolic, tongue-in-cheek name.

The group, Anderson’s first since NRBQ, employs an unusual approach to song arrangements: Anderson, Camp and McLaughlin often sing in unison. That may have helped avert a clash of egos, and it definitely gives the record a distinctive stamp.

And when the trio transitions from unison to three-part harmony, it’s goose-bump good.

There’s tasty guitar throughout, and the composer cooperative — with every song credited as a three-way effort — produces first-rate material with plenty of variety.

“Give Your Love To Me” is loose, ZZ Top-style boogie, “Can I” soars over a Tom Petty-esque guitar bed, the slow waltz “Take Me Back” recalls The Everly Brothers and the closer “Ding Dong” is ‘50s rock worthy of Leiber and Stoller.

These Headliners deserve boldface type.

— Steven Wine, AP

VARIOUS ARTISTS

Album: “Just Tell Me That You Want Me: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac” (Hear Music)

Grade: B

It’s rare that you pick up a tribute album with no idea what you’re going to get. But this celebration of Fleetwood’s Mac’s music uses many alternative bands (Washed Out, Tame Impala, Gardens & Villa).

And they’ve ventured into the remoter regions of Mac’s catalog — the collection closes with, of all things, a Bob Welch song covered by MGMT — so it’s all pretty revelatory.

Highlights include Antony’s tremulous, votive take on “Landslide,” the Kills’ merciless deconstruction of “Dreams,” and the New Pornographers’ fizzy, fuzzy do-over of Christine McVie’s “Think About Me.”

A tribute? It’s more of a transformation, with moments both strange and wonderful.

— David Hiltbrand, Philadelphia Inquirer