It Aint't Easy

For a brief moment at the start of the '90s, everyone seemed to be doing the retro-rock thing, and while most bands were digging back to the late '60s for inspiration, the Four Horsemen's ambitions went no further than the late '70s – more specifically AC/DC. There's not a single original riff on all of their first full album, Nobody Said It Was Easy, mind you, but the band's raunchy guitars and gritty delivery make up for this in spades. And had he not been arrested seemingly every six months for one misdemeanor or another, outlaw frontman Frank Starr may have even challenged Axl Rose for his "king of the bad boys" crown. Starr's whiskey and broken glass vocal style literally ignites the album's best moments, including the title track, "Can't Stop Rockin'," and the incredible "Rockin' Is Ma' Business." And while "Hot Head lifts its main riff directly from AC/DC's "Rock'n'Roll Damnation," the slightly more original "Tired Wings" actually received some MTV rotation thanks to its mellower Southern rock vibe and slide guitars.

Some critics might dismiss Sophie Milman as simply another pretty female singer, yet with her third CD, she continues to show an adventurous spirit, tackling standards and obscurities while also forging ahead into pop. Retaining many of the musicians from her previous release, Make Someone Happy, the upbeat alto offers a hip take of Duke Ellington's long overlooked "Take Love Easy," exuding sex appeal and backed by guitarist Rob Piltch, bassist Kieran Overs, and percussionist Mark McLean (who also arranged it), with a brief solo added on soprano sax by PJ Perry. Pianist Paul Shrofel contributed the breezy bop vehicle "That Is Love," which showcases Milman in her best light. She soars in the brisk treatment of the old chestnut "Day In, Day Out," starting in a samba setting and switching to bop, featuring alto saxophonist Wessel Warmdaddy Anderson.

The premier purveyors of Ibiza comedown have selected two dozen tracks of laid-back, cozily experimental music to help celebrate their 20th anniversary, and while it at times feels ungainly, it never seems too scripted. The first disc has Amalagation of Soundz creating a rustic drum'n'bass mantra ("Enchant Me"), Moodrama mixing tribal beats with flitters of jazz (the appropriately titled "Jazz Tip"), and even Deep & Wide constructing a gorgeously subtle native twinkle along the lines of Dario G's "Voices." The other disc tends to go for the more celestial (Jean Michel Jarre, Jon & Vangelis) or the post-sunset reawakening (Foundland, Christian Alvad), but begins to sag with the drugged-out self-importance of a born-again hippy. Luckily, with so many tracks on offer, it's easy to sift out the treasures. This is a fine, calming collection of indigenous, open-door attitude.