Styx
Brave New World

America
Human Nature

Pretenders
Viva El Amor!

Brave New World While not exactly a return to form, the first studio record since 1983 by the classic Styx trio of Dennis DeYoung, Tommy Shaw, and James Young will undoubtedly please hard-core fans. There's nothing here on the level of "Come Sail Away," "Miss America," or "Lady," but that trademark combination of thrilling, arty hard-rock sounds and gently swooping, full-blown ballads continues. Dennis DeYoung's crazily high-pitched voice still hovers admirably in the castrato range for the most part, though time has introduced a few rough edges. In grand art-rock tradition, the record's supposedly got something to do with futurist British scribe Aldous Huxley (one of classic rockers' favorites), but if anything will bother the listener, that's not it. Songs such as "Number One" reveal an attempt by the band to update their sound with newer variations on hard rock; the result is less than satisfying. When they stick to the old formula, as with "I Will Be Your Witness" and "While There's Still Time," it's like grunge never happened, which is what this nearly-30-year-old act are supposed to sound like. --Mike McGonigal (©amazon.com)

'Human Nature' is just another example of how America have progressed in their art. 'Pages' must be rated as one of Dewey Bunnell's best. 'Overwhelming' is also a reflection of one of the finest artists of all time, Gerry Beckley's talent is so deep that one can only surmise as to what next he offers. (©amazon.com)

Viva el Amor!, Chrissie Hynde is back to kick some ass. Viva el Amor!, the Pretenders' first studio album since 1994's Last of the Independents, provides a reading on the singer's state of mind and relationships. Hynde and company--stalwart drummer Martin Chambers and an assortment of complementary players--take the energy level to breathtaking heights, especially on "Legalise Me," which matches Jeff Beck's incendiary guitar work against our heroine's rapid-fire delivery. Hynde shows that she can still sneer with the best of them on "Popstar," her biting send-up of late-'90s girl singers (and reportedly a roman à clef aimed in part at Patsy Kensit, who was once married to Hynde's former husband, Simple Minds' Jim Kerr). "Baby's Breath" skewers a young lover and showcases her sangfroid vocals at their chilling best. Hynde pours on more vitriol in "Biker," the record's final cut, which pairs steel-hard lyrics with an incongruously sweet string section. Nearly two decades after the release of the Pretenders' landmark debut, the Great Pretender is still feeling feisty. --Jaan Uhelszki (©amazon.com)