Gordon Lightfoot Book, Music and More!

Swedish music generally breaks down into the garage-rock of The Hives or the dream-pop of The Cardigans. Warm and fuzzy, The Perishers’ sound definitely belongs in the latter camp. No wonder the group, led by singer-guitarist Ola Klüft, has been featured on TV’s The O.C. and opened for Sarah McLachlan. Still, the band’s third album has its share of surprises. Despite Hallmark titles like “Get Well” and “To Start Anew,” the band’s hopeful songs are melodically fresh, lyrically astute and—best of all—cliché-free. Sept. 4        

Along with Dave Matthews, Harper leads the surfer brand of blissed-out blues, folk, reggae and jam-band music that includes Jack Johnson and Xavier Rudd. The acoustic songs on Harper’s latest, recorded in Paris with his group the Innocent Criminals, should go over well with the sun-baked, smoked-out summer festival crowd, especially the footloose “Say You Will,” the empowering “Fight Outta You,” the gospel-tinged soul number “Needed You Tonight” and the hypnotic guitar instrumental “Paris Sunrise #7.” Aug. 28

Thompson made six classic folk-rock albums with her then-husband Richard and released her solo debut, One Clear Moment, in 1985. She waited 17 years before her next, the aptly titled Fashionably Late. Now, Thompson is back with a gorgeous collection of folk songs, including Tom Waits’ “Day After Tomorrow,” many co-written with her son, Teddy, and one penned by her daughter, Kamilla. But the highlight is Thompson’s own “Whisky, Bob Copper and Me,” a deeply moving ballad steeped in rich Celtic traditions. Aug. 14

Like his wife, Deryck Whibley knows he can catch more flies with sugar than vinegar. On his band’s latest album, Avril Lavigne’s husband offers three spoonfuls of melodic pop—each of which ends, oddly enough, in the first person: “With Me,” “Best of Me” and “Look at Me.” The U.S.-based Whibley is wise to sweeten the vitriol of such anti-Bush numbers as “The Jester” and the controversial “March of the Dogs,” which drew the ire of Rolling Stone for its reference to the killing of the president. Diplomatic punk. July 17

Vega has always been a scholarly folkie. After graduating from the performing arts school featured in the film musical Fame, she majored in English literature and began writing thoughtful songs like “Luka,” her 1987 hit about domestic abuse. Now, Vega has joined Norah Jones on the once jazzy Blue Note label. Songs like “Edith Wharton’s Figurines” and “New York is a Woman” carry on in a literary vein, while “Pornographer’s Dream” cleverly sets a tale of desire to a seductive bossa nova beat. July 17   

When New York’s Interpol arrived in 2002 with its debut album, Turn On the Bright Lights, there were many comparisons to British doom-and-gloom bands like Joy Division and Echo & the Bunnymen. Although the band’s singer Paul Banks still bears a scary vocal resemblance to Joy Division’s Ian Curtis, Interpol is developing its own icy, angular sound. Standout tracks on the group’s third album include the upbeat “Heinrich Maneuver,” the peppy “Pace is the Trick and the chiming “Rest My Chemistry.” July 10

Although it has been overshadowed by labelmates Arcade Fire, Spoon’s stature is on the rise. The Austin indie rock band scored a critical breakthrough with 2005’s Gimme Fiction album, which wound up on many year-end lists. Then frontman Britt Daniel helped to score the Will Ferrell comedy-drama Stranger Than Fiction, with the band contributing several songs to the soundtrack. Spoon’s sixth studio album, despite its stuttering title, is a smooth and seamless blend of story songs and Steely Dan-like pop. July 10

King Wilkie, a young, six-piece bluegrass outfit from Charlottesville, Virginia, takes its name from Bill Monroe's horse. That says a lot about these boys’ tastes. Rather than pursue commercial bluegrass, they pay homage to the standard bearers Monroe, Ralph Stanley and the Louvin Brothers, with nods to Gram Parsons and the Byrds. The group’s second album features plenty of sparkling picking and high lonesome singing, especially on anxious songs about the loss of innocence like “Savannah” and “Wrecking Ball.” July 3

An uncompromising talent, O’Connor came out of retirement to release 2005’s Throw Down Your Arms, a collection of conscious reggae classics. Now, the Irish icon offers an album she calls “my attempt to create a place of peace in a time of war.” The two-disc set includes both acoustic and pop versions of eight new numbers and several passionate covers, including “I Don’t Know How to Love Him,” from Jesus Christ Superstar. But the best song is her stunning “Something Beautiful,” which radiates peace and tranquility. June 26

England’s Lowe is the king of cool. He produced the Damned, Elvis Costello and the Pretenders. But to have also written “Cruel to Be Kind,” “(What’s So Funny ’Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding” and other classics makes him a legend. He was once even married to Johnny Cash’s step-daughter, Carlene Carter! Lowe’s latest finds the 58-year-old pub-rock pioneer mixing Cash-style laments (“A Better Man”) with such intelligent romantic pop songs as “Hope For Us All” and “Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day.” June 26