(FORTUNE Magazine) – The Go-Betweens Bright Yellow, Bright Orange (Jetset) Another modest masterpiece from the woefully underappreciated Australian duo, who have been cranking out elegant albums on and off since the late '70s. A few more smart pop records as great as this one, and we might forgive the Aussies for Men at Work.

Ry Cooder & Manuel Galban Mambo Sinuendo (Nonesuch) The instrumental electric guitar duets between Cooder (the man behind Buena Vista Social Club) and Galban (guitarist and arranger for Los Zafiros) are light-hearted and playful, reminiscent more of mambo and Mancini than the traditional son of Buena Vista.

The Delgados Hate (Beggars Banquet) Who says all you need is love? On their fourth album, the Scottish quartet sets nasty sentiments like "Hate is everywhere /Look inside your heart and you will find it there" to lilting melodies sung sweetly by Alun Woodward and Emma Pollock. John Lennon would be appalled.

Loose Fur Loose Fur (Drag City) Despite the presence of Jeff Tweedy, this noisy collaboration with avant-rocker Jim O'Rourke often sounds less like Wilco than like Wilco dropping its instruments off the stage. But that's not a bad thing, and several Tweedy-penned tunes here are fully realized and Wilco-worthy.

Yabby You Dub It to the Top 1976--1979 (Blood & Fire) Silly moniker aside, Vivian "Yabby You" Jackson is one serious dude--deeply religious and partial to song titles like "Blood a Go Run Down King Street." It's darker, scarier, and more sublime than any reggae you're likely to have heard.