By Paul V.

Singled Out

Depeche Mode - Precious - Reprise

This new single is everything we love about our beloved Depeche Mode: An electrofied groove, a kinetic minor-key melody (prepare to "art-dance"), a stunning bridge, and Dave Gahan's plaintive vocals. Think of this -- literally -- as the black-lipstick kissing cousin to "Enjoy The Silence." Welcome back, boys!

The Like - Are You Thinking What I'm Thinking - Geffen

It's easy to be slightly suspicious of this debut, as this trio of Silver Lake lovelies is the progeny of two famous musicians and one music biz veteran. But nepotism and connections only get you so far, and the genius thing about The Like is they'd easily garner their huge buzz without their connections. They formed here in L.A. in 2001, when best friends Charlotte Froom and Tennessee Jane Bunny Thomas (a drummer in her all-girls-school band) met Z Berg, and found the voice and songs they had been looking for. Almost immediately, the ladies began to garner local praise and attention, surprising their audiences with a radio-ready blessing and musical complexity belying their very young years (two 15-year-olds and a 16-year-old at the time). To hear what they've come up with in four short years is fairly astounding: A tuneful and delicate yet rocking collection of eclectic, shimmering tunes -- which they all wrote -- equally inspired by the Cocteau Twins and The Sundays as they are by Veruca Salt or The Cure -- with a pinch of Death Cab For Cutie. Berg's voice has an immediately alluring quality, smoky and mature yet with just enough quiver of lithe vulnerability, and Wendy Melvoin's production is spotless. Standouts include "The One," "June Gloom," "You Bring Me Down," and "So I'll Sit Here Waiting." This is a serious contender for debut of the year. And hey -- what's not to like about that?

Jamiroquai - Dynamite - Epic

In the afterlife, you just know that fuzzy-hatted Jamiroquai leader Jay Kay will be best buds with Sylvester and Barry White. In the meantime, while he's still here among us mortals, his mission remains clear -- to hearken back to the breezy days of dusty disco pop and get us dancing. On his suitably-titled latest, he's really pulled out all the stops, giving his trademark retro-funkadelic sound a bit more grime and edge, yet still sounding slicker than a grease-coated frying pan. Lyrically, his familiar mixture of joi de vivre, sexual boasting, lazy daydreams, and political protest swirl around, namely "World That He Wants," a heartfelt, Coldplay-esque piano ballad aimed straight at G.W. Bush. His skilled and tight band explores various genres over 11 tracks with some acid jazz ("Talullah"), New Wave rock ("Black Devil Car"), electro-house ("Electric Mistress"), and give us doses aplenty of old school disco funk, namely the first single, "Feels Just Like It Should," "Give Hate A Chance," and the hugely infectious "Seven Days" (which, along with the track "Love Blind," sounds like an homage to the Scissor Sisters). Dynamite is arguably one of Jamiroquai's best albums (even though some older fans might carry nostalgia for the band's earliest albums), and if it ain't broke, why fix it? Oh, ignore some of his song titles -- which, as in the past, sound just plain stupid sometimes -- and let this organic and laid-back tapestry of a record permeate your ears.

Sigur Ros - Takk - Geffen

It must not be easy being Icelandic, living in 55-degree weather in July. Then again, three of pop music's most beloved underground champs arrived here from there: Bjork, Gus Gus, and Sigur Ros. While the former two used dance beats, U.S.-friendly song structures, and English lyrics to lure us in, the latter did just the opposite by being as progressive and mysterious sounding as possible (and who also sing in a non-language they dubbed "Hopelandic," and sometimes put out CDs with no song titles or information whatsoever). However, get past those oddities and your ears are treated to some of the most gorgeous, haunting, languid, heart breaking, and uplifting songs ever put to tape. With layer upon layer of vocals, pianos, and strings, this classically trained outfit draws the listener into an exceptionally peaceful state of mind, and the language they sing in (this time, actual Icelandic) becomes completely irrelevant. The expansive scale of resounding tracks like "Glosoli," "Andvari" or "Gong" may be a little too grand for some, yet not all that different from Radiohead's last three records (and hell -- Sigur Ros is Brad Pitt's favorite band, so if he can get into them, anyone can). For something entirely different, enjoy a band that's confident in their very specialized craft, a band that has been put here on Earth to overtake us with their surreal soundscapes and dreamlike overtures. You'll want to hug someone right away.

Catch Paul V. spinning tunes in Silver Lake: "MegaMonday" at MJ's, Dragstrip 66 (second Saturday each month at 1160 Vermont Ave.), Spit (third Saturday each month at Faultline), and "Milkshake" Thursday nights at MJ's. Tune in for his "Smash Mix" on Indie 103.1 FM on Fridays at 5:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.dragstrip66.com.