Billboard CD reviews: Death Cab, Black Angels

ARTIST: DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE

ALBUM: NARROW STAIRS

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Death Cab for Cutie, that poster boy for sensitive indie pop, proves there's some grit behind all that pretty, "OC"-approved music with "Narrow Stairs." The follow-up to 2005's "Plans" provides welcome evidence of growth: The songs here hit with a full-on assault of crunching guitar riffs, distorted, cracked vocals and walls of disorienting feedback. Frontman Ben Gibbard's lyrics visit the moodier and darker corners of his mind. A lumbering bass lingers behind a stalker on the loose on the eight-minute "I Will Possess Your Heart," the guitars driving "Cath ... " venture close to alt-country territory, and "Pity and Fear" grooves with a jungle-like beat. It's still the Death Cab you know and love, just a little rougher around the edges.

ARTIST: THE BLACK ANGELS

ALBUM: DIRECTIONS TO SEE A GHOST (Suretone Records/Light in the Attic)

If you missed the Black Angels' full-length debut, "Passover," in 2006, let this effort be a reminder of your mistake. This troupe cranks out hazy, dark rock 'n' roll -- real, honest-to-God rock 'n' roll -- with disarming ease. From the ominous, churning guitars and moaning toms on opener "You on the Run" to the 16-plus minutes of epic closer "Snake in the Grass," the quartet borrows from the sludgy psych of the Velvet Underground, squeals through the Jesus and Mary Chain and tops it off with singer Alex Maas' creep-tastic, reverb-drenched howl. The breakdowns on songs like "Dee-Ree-Shee" and "You in Color" truly highlight each member's technical and dynamic abilities; the crescendos emphasize their quantum power to make great art as a group.

ARTIST: 3 DOORS DOWN

ALBUM: 3 DOORS DOWN (Universal Republic)

Great rock bands know not only how to shake listeners with thundering guitars, but also how to feed their souls with thoughtful lyrics that echo the complexities of the human experience. 3 Doors Down succeeds powerfully on both levels with this brilliant album. The band's fourth studio set is already off to a great start on radio with the hit "It's Not My Time," just one of 12 memorable tracks: "Train" is a hard-edged anthem about escaping to a better life, and "Citizen Soldier," written at the request of the National Guard to be used in promotional spots, is a musically aggressive and lyrically poignant tribute to those serving in the military. Taut musicianship, well-crafted songs and potent vocals make this a landmark album in an already multiplatinum career.

ARTIST: DUFFY

ALBUM: ROCKFERRY (Mercury Records)

The recent surge of Europeans retrofitting and upgrading 1960s soul rolls on in swirling style with this debut from Duffy, a Welsh singer-songwriter from the school of jazzy chanteuses who are here to maximize the international-but-not-too-international-for-Starbucks style, and sound quite lovely doing it. "Rockferry" hits the major notes: "Warwick Avenue" is a string-smooched jazz number, the title cut is a towering wall of piano-powered sound with moody lyrics, and first single "Mercy" is about as summery as summery gets. Like all such records, "Rockferry" splits its time between paying tribute to its source material and knocking it off, but its principal's vocals, and generally pleasing wall-of-sound treatment, make it a good move anyway.

ARTIST: BABYLON CIRCUS

ALBUM: DANCES OF RESISTANCE (Mr Bongo Records)

This 10-man French crew has a tremendously entertaining album in hand with "Dances of Resistance." The disc opens with the title track, a whirlwind of high-energy ska, then doubles the dosage with the frantic "No Competition," rolls through a circus-like interlude appropriately titled "Circus" and finally delivers a tune in French, "De la Musique et du Bruit." At this point the ruling vibe is evident -- full-tilt ska and dancehall reggae married to quirky lyrics. Case in point: "Mr. Clown," a midtempo number with a terrific rhythmic bounce and a sly, sardonic lyric that's as suggestive of a Fellini scenario as a piece of music can be. Different textures offer brief respites from the furious pace, as on the jazzy "Interlude Barbare" or the Balkan Gypsy feel of "Parade Acoustique."

ARTIST: THE DRESDEN DOLLS