Entertainment, Music - Navy Times

What’s new in music releases for July 22

Miley Cyrus

“Breakout,” 2½ stars

The title track kicks off Miley Cyrus’ second studio album under her own name like a 21st-century “School’s Out,” a delirious rush of summer-means-fun exuberance (co-written, fittingly, by ex-Go-Go Gina Schock). If only the rest matched up.

As the approaching-16 singer’s concerns understandably shift from tween-age self-empowerment to the travails of teen romance (and the environment, as heard on the ultra-simplistic “Wake Up America”), some of the zest that made the previous album’s hit “See You Again” one of the century’s least-resistible pop singles has evaporated, replaced by reflective ballads (some among the album’s most affecting songs) and hollow rockers, low points of which are a personality-deficient cover of “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” and the Pussycat Dolls-lite “Fly on the Wall.”

Cyrus’ singing is still appealing, and pop-rock fans 8 to 80 will find moments of delight, but let’s hope for cheerier tunes next time. — Ken Barnes

Download: “Breakout,” “Goodbye,” “Four Walls”

Skip: “Full Circle,” “Fly on the Wall”

Nine Inch Nails

“The Slip,” 3 stars

The album that Trent Reznor made available as a surprise free download in May is now a limited-edition CD and bonus DVD. (A vinyl version arrives Aug. 5.) The audacity he exhibits in his continuing flight from industry norms mirrors the aggro-electro doyen’s intrepid noise warrens. He again mines his decaying soul for howling, industrial fuzz-rock, stark ballads and angsty digital grinders. Beneath the throbbing layers of distortion: melodies that cling. — Edna Gundersen

Download: “Head Down,” “Lights in the Sky,” “Discipline,” “1,000,000”

Consider: “Four of Us Are Dying”

Buddy Guy

“Skin Deep,” 3½ stars

Guy may be about to turn 72, but he can still crank up the amp and send a blistering stream of notes from his guitar strings. When he sings, “The bogeyman started running when he heard me coming,” you don’t doubt that he’s telling the truth. Eric Clapton, Susan Tedeschi, Robert Randolph and Derek Trucks all give Guy a hand with piercing blues tracks that cut to the bone. — Steve Jones

Download: “Best Damn Fool,” “Every Time I Sing the Blues,” “Out in the Woods,” “Smell the Funk”

Skip: “Show Me the Money

Noel Gourdin

“After My Time,” 3 stars

“The River,” Gourdin’s heartfelt ode to family, is just a taste of the soul that flows through this sumptuous debut. His narratives about relationships that work, fail or even muddle along blend classic sound and contemporary ethos. Gourdin’s silky vocals and smooth arrangements make it easy to spend time getting into the groove. — Steve Jones

Download: “One Love,” “Hurts Like Hell,” “Led You On,” “Too Late”

Skip: “Reach”

Ace Young

“Ace Young,” 1½ stars

What does a guy do when he looks like an arena rock star but sounds like Justin Timberlake? On his debut album, “American Idol” alum Young cranks out a few treacly power ballads to accompany R&B-flavored tunes that nod, weakly, to Michael Jackson and Prince. The disc reaches its nadir on “Where Will You Go,” a plea to a pregnant girlfriend played out against a darkly burping synth. “Anywhere but here” would be my answer. — Elysa Gardner

Consider: the pleasantly cheesy “Fast Life”

Skip: the rest