Canadian rock band Our Lady Peace has been around for a while – seven studio albums now, to be exact, and their latest, Burn Burn, hit streets last month. And while the members of OLP claim to feel great about having more creative control at this point in their career, they have not used that control to do anything earth-shattering here. In fact, the band has regressed a bit, and has begun to gravitate toward the adult contemporary end of the radio dial. Bands like Creed, Nickelback, and the Goo Goo Dolls have lived in radio suburbia for years, and now OLP has entered the neighborhood, as this batch of songs on Burn Burn are at times catchy, but mostly dull and lifeless. Many bands like this that used to be cool and alternative have softened greatly, having succumbed to years of record execs telling them to write “hits.” The first single off of Burn Burn, “All You Did Was Save My Life,” is a prime example, a formulaic track that you will tire of before the song has even played through. “Dreamland” and “The End Is Where We Began” also lean toward sugary pop, though it’s worth pointing out that singer Raine Maida can still bring it. One of the bright spots here is “Never Get Over You,” which may remind you of the Spiritual Machines days, but mostly, as on “Signs of Life,” there just aren’t many on this album. (LABEL: Warner Music Group)

Our Lady Peace MySpace Page

Young pianist and singer/songwriter Peter Cincotti came off as a young Harry Connick, Jr. with his crooner delivery on his self-titled debut a few years back. So it may come as a shock when you hear his new album of all original material, East of Angel Town. That’s because this is a pop/rock album through and through, and Cincotti has obviously been hiding behind some really impressive songwriting ability. But this project was also aided by an all-star team of producers including David Foster, Humberto Garcia and Jochem van der Saag, all of whom contributed to making this album sound larger than life. All of that also makes Cincotti’s newfound pop sensibility a nice breath of fresh air, and while the closest comparison to the songs on East of Angel Town might be Gavin DeGraw, make no mistake about the fact that Peter Cincotti has his own artistry and he wears it well. Among a pretty stellar batch of songs, the standouts are the hard-driving “Be Careful” and “Love is Gone,” the bluesy “Another Falling Star” and “Witches Brew” and the made-for-radio pop gem, “Man on a Mission.” (LABEL: Warner Bros.)

Peter Cincotti MySpace Page

If a dude admits that he likes a chick flick, he might lose certain privileges, like, you know, the privilege to not be hassled by his buddies. But soundtracks are another story, because sometimes they surprise us with songs we actually like or even ones we have listened to and purchased on our own before. As for “He’s Just Not That Into You,” which is the chick flick of chick flick titles, there are some songs on its soundtrack that will let you guys keep your street cred and then some, such as My Morning Jacket’s “I’m Amazed,” the Black Crowes’ “By Your Side” and the Replacements’ “Can’t Hardly Wait.” But even the estrogen-heavy stuff isn’t bad – Tristan Prettyman’s “Madly” and Erin McCarley’s “Love, Save The Empty” are catchy and worth a download, and make up for the sappy James Morrison tune (“You Make It Real”) or the over-played Human League hit, “Don’t You Want Me.” But the kicker? Scarlett Johansson’s “Last Goodbye” is the closer, and it is so not bad at all – there’s no surprise she has a sexy voice, but it’s her delivery and the beauty of the song itself that will surprise the most skeptical of you all. (Warner Bros.)

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