album reviews: Spin Cycle is a biweekly roundup of the latest music releases selected by Citysearch editors.

Tool [ tickets ]
"Lateralus" (Volcano)
[ sound clip: "Reflection" ]

Tool’s multi-platinum reputation has quickly ushered its latest single, "Schism," onto radio playlists nationwide. Still, the band’s first opus of new material in five years is an album made with little consideration for achieving widespread commercial appeal. While rife with all of the chunky guitar riffs and growling screams that fans have come to expect, "Lateralus" is primarily a collection of puzzling time changes, haunting vocals and beyond-intricate percussive patterns that create a theme rooted more in Eastern philosophy than in rock and roll. Discernible hooks are few and far between; instead, epic numbers such as the 11-minute-long "Reflection"--a track that features a three-plus minute instrumental intro--showcase the band’s complex arrangements. Most frequently dubbed a "heavy metal" act in the past, Tool has clearly embraced the "progressive rock" label that has always hovered around it, and its latest effort is almost 80 minutes of musicianship that will leave the discerning listener slack-jawed.
--Jon Zahlaway, liveDaily staff writer

Radiohead [ tickets ]
"Amnesiac" (Capitol)
[ sound clip: "I Might Be Wrong" ]

"Amnesiac" deepens the mystery that Radiohead began with its curious, largely electronic 2000 release, "Kid A," and certainly won't satiate those awaiting the lauded band's supposed return to guitar-heavy epics. Let the opening steel-drum pangs on the song "Packt Like Sardines in a Crushed Tin Box" serve as a warning: the rhapsodic "Amnesiac" isn’t about to explain where, exactly, Radiohead is headed musically. Then again, these Oxford, England-based art-rock adventurers have been exploring uncharted waters since 1997’s "OK Computer." The trick to digesting "Amnesiac" is to not become too stumped by its alien soundscapes. Simply allow yourself to visit its luminous peaks (the triumphant "You and Whose Army?") and craggy valleys (the depth-charged "Dollars & Cents"). Surprisingly, the record reveals the band’s insecurities; at the jazz-soaked close of "Life in a Glasshouse," leader Thom Yorke wonders "Is someone listening?" "Amnesiac" carries enough weighty melancholia and contemplative clang that the answer should be a firm "Yes."
--Scott Henkemeyer, twincities.citysearch.com

Mary Chapin Carpenter [ tickets ]
"Time* Sex* Love*" (Columbia)
[ sound clip: "Slave to the Beauty" ]

Mary Chapin Carpenter has a lot of catching up to do. Five years have passed since her last studio album, "A Place in the World," although she has happily maintained a consistent touring schedule. And those who have been fortunate to catch her in concert know that this powerhouse country star still has something to say. The influence of recording in London is occasionally apparent. ("Maybe World" sounds like a forgotten find from the British Invasion.) The first single, "Simple Life," might scare away longtime listeners, with its silly reverb and an obnoxious chorus. Yet, "The Long Way Home" effortlessly reminds you that life is far more than "a cul-de-sac of dreams." All told, Carpenter delivers a batch of reassuring songs--about confidence in yourself and the world--making you wish she’d check in a bit more often.
--Craig Shelburne, nashville.citysearch.com

Ron Sexsmith [ tickets ]
"Blue Boy" (spinART)
[ sound clip: "Cheap Hotel" ]

The intriguing prospect of Steve Earle co-producing a Ron Sexsmith album means pairing the outspoken alt-country rocker with an understated, soft-spoken singer-songwriter. Both men are steeped in the tradition of troubadours like Woody Guthrie and Buddy Holly, so the team-up has a certain logic. While Mitchell Froom’s production of Sexsmith's last two albums, “Other Songs” (1997) and “Whereabouts” (1999), had an enveloping warmth, "Blue Boy"'s matte finish is a trifle cold. But those differences are rendered minimal, because in both cases, Sexsmith’s gorgeous vocals and refined songwriting shine through. Like Roy Orbison's, his voice has an inviting, narcotic quality. A Wings-era Paul McCartney influence surfaces often, most notably on "Miracle in Itself" and "Foolproof." Standouts include "Cheap Hotel," the ballad of a battered housewife/mother on the run, and the perfectly lazy funk of the introverted "Not Too Big"--where he admits, "I'm not too big on parties/Never know what to say." On "Blue Boy," Sexsmith says all the right things.
--Don Harvey, austin.citysearch.com

Mark Eitzel [ tickets ]
"The Invisible Man" (Matador)
[ sound clip: "Boy With the Hammer in the Paper Bag" ]

Former American Music Club visionary and eternal critics' darling Mark Eitzel returns after a three-year absence with a typically bruised and beautiful collection of lovelorn ballads, Raymond Carveresque character studies and darkly romantic confessionals. Recorded largely in Eitzel's San Francisco home, "The Invisible Man" avoids the pitfalls of many such stripped-down, DIY endeavors by blending subtle acoustic arrangements with consistently inventive computer-generated rhythm tracks and samples (Eitzel affectionately calls his Mac computer "Dumb Ass"). Propelled by the pitter-patter of programmed beats, startling narratives like "The Boy With the Hammer" and "Steve I Always Knew" mark musically fresh, if lyrically familiar, territory that will appeal to fans of David Gray's "White Ladder". Even further afield for the usually mordant (if not morbid) Eitzel is the unabashedly joyous "Proclaim Your Joy," which listeners will do once they realize that this invisible man remains our finest, most fearless singer-songwriter.
--Steven Jenkins, bayarea.citysearch.com

Previous Spin Cycles:

May 10: Destiny's Child, The Black Crowes, Depeche Mode, Robert Cray Band, Mark Lanegan

April 26: Tim McGraw, Janet Jackson, Kirsty MacColl, Alejandro Escovedo, Red House Painters

April 12: Run-DMC, Creeper Lagoon, The Cash Brothers, MJ Cole and Los Hombres Calientes

March 29: Aerosmith, Shawn Colvin, Mirwais, Pete Yorn and Old 97's

Have a comment or question? Send a message to the Spin Cycle editor: Don Harvey.