Cedar Hill Refugees
Pale Imperfect Diamond
(Cedar Hill)

Think bluegrass music is predictable? Check out Pale Imperfect Diamond, the brainchild of Jack Clift and John Carter Cash. With help from icons such as Ralph Stanley, Marty Stuart and Randy Scruggs, they put together an American-Uzbek bluegrass ensemble. Uzbek music—part Balkan, part Southern Asian and part Central Asian—blends surprisingly well with bluegrass. "Whitehouse Blues" is shot through with wild cross rhythms and keening strings, and you won't recognize "Sailaway Ladies," its hint of an American tune blended with throat singing. On "Keys to the Kingdom" kettle drums, drones and a brass section lay down funereal tones for Ralph Stanley's pathos-laden vocals; and "Oh, Bury Me Not" is what you'd get if you had the Beijing Opera record the soundtrack to a Bollywood film on the streets of Laredo. An imperfect diamond? Perhaps, but a valued gem nonetheless.  —Rob Weir

Phoenix
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
(Glassnote)

The French band's fourth album finds them honing their rhythmically propulsive brand of synth-rock. The cheekily titled Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix kicks off with two of the year's most immediate singles. "Liztomania," which references both the gonzo Ken Russell film and the classical piano virtuoso, is a bopping examination of fame. The throbbing rocker "1901" is even better, full of chiming guitars, buzzing bass and seductive vocal hooks. Nothing else scales those heights, but there's no shortage of winningly well-crafted pop tunes like "Lasso" and "Fences." The only misstep is "Love Like A Sunset," a listless ambient soundwash that overstays its welcome. At least that track shows Phoenix continues to expand its sound. For a band that was once derided as the French Strokes, they show every sign of reversing that comparison.  —Jeff Jackson

Golden Bloom
Fan the Flames
(The Sleepy West)

Golden Bloom is Shawn Fogel; he plays all instruments and sings all vocal parts on the album. Fan the Flames, Golden Bloom's second album, is tight, near-bubblegum pop. His lyrics are a curious mix of optimism and social commentary, although he occasionally confuses idealism with answers. Fogel sums up Fan the Flames' socially-conscious optimism with a lyric on the last track ("Untitled"), addressed to former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich: "What the hell is going on?/ Just admit what you've done wrong and we'll move on/ 'cause we've got far too many optimistic songs to sing." Golden Bloom plays the Elevens Aug. 22.  —Jennifer Burwell