The Master Soundtra Paul Thomas Anderson

Paul Thomas Saunders is a young, Leeds-based singer/ songwriter who until now fit that mold comfortably. His three previous EPs were largely introspective guitar and vocal affairs. He's gifted with a clear, high voice and a falsetto to die for, but that's the icing on Beautiful Desolation. For his Atlantic debut, Saunders has built an enormous sonic palace. It's full of soaring synths, grand pianos, big drums, thrumming basses, wafting electric guitars, organs, and massively layered effects. It's simultaneously cinematic and melodic. One can hear traces of the late '80s in his production, but it's not nostalgic.

One could easily make the case for designating the Masters Apprentices as the best Australian rock band of the '60s. Featuring singer Jim Keays and songwriter/rhythm guitarist Mick Bower, the band's earliest recordings combined the gritty R&B/rock of Brits like the Pretty Things with the minor-key melodies of the Yardbirds…

One could easily make the case for designating the Masters Apprentices as the best Australian rock band of the '60s. Featuring singer Jim Keays and songwriter/rhythm guitarist Mick Bower, the band's earliest recordings combined the gritty R&B/rock of Brits like the Pretty Things with the minor-key melodies of the Yardbirds. The compelling "Wars or Hands of Time" and the dreamy psychedelia of "Living in a Child's Dream" were undiscovered classics, although the latter was a Top Ten hit in Australia. Bower left the group after suffering a nervous breakdown in late 1967, and the Masters grew steadily less interesting, moving from flower pop and hard rock to progressive and acoustic sounds.