Danger Mouse

“The Grey Album”

Compare to: P. Diddy, Pink Floyd/”The Wizard of Oz”

What do you get when you mix the vocals from Jay-Z’s “The Black Album” with the music from The Beatles’ “The White Album?”

One hell of a lawsuit.

By juxtaposing two of the biggest names of rock and hip-hop on one album, West Coast DJ and producer Danger Mouse has created one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the year, if not of all time (Rolling Stone calls it “the ultimate mix album”). Unfortunately, “White Album” owner EMI Records, who filed a cease-and-desist order against the copyright-infringing Danger Mouse, has ensured the album will never find its way to store shelves.

Herein lies the tragedy of “The Grey Album” — since only 3,000 copies of the album were pressed, collectors and illegal Internet downloaders may be the only people to ever hear one of the most innovative concept projects of all time.

Danger Mouse says he can trace every note of every song back to “The White Album,” which is hard to doubt after just one listen. Surprisingly, the smooth, rhythmic prose of Jay-Z over the conceptual sounds of The Beatles sounds completely natural.

Although the sampled, remixed and repeated background music on a few tracks — specifically “Allure” and “Justify My Thug” — sounds a bit like the CD is skipping, most of the songs are incredibly smooth. So smooth, in fact, it’s hard to believe hits “Change Clothes” and “My First Song” could work so well with music that came out 35 years before.

On first listen, it may be a bit disconcerting to hear something as untouchable as The Beatles mixed with lyrics like “I got 99 problems but the bitch ain’t one,” but it’s definitely worth its own weight in sacrilege.

Risk the lawsuits — this album is worth downloading, regardless of the punishment.

— Aaron Ladage

Kenny Chesney

“When the Sun Goes Down” (BNA)

Compare to: Tim McGraw, Collin Raye, Rhett Akins

Kenny Chesney’s latest release, “When the Sun Goes Down,” proves one thing: Chesney is ready to explore a deeper, more mature side, but cannot put his lighthearted youthful years behind him.

On his eighth album, Chesney steps into adult life singing of love and fatherhood but doesn’t stay long.

The sophisticated album opener, “There Goes My Life,” drips raw emotion, showing off Chesney’s sentimental range. Dealing with an unexpected fatherhood, the singer finds himself transitioning from the pain of regret to the pain of missing his daughter when she leaves for college.

Chesney shines on the ballad, proving to fans he has grown not only as person, but as a singer and songwriter as well. His voice, now deeper, flows with a relaxed confidence. His lyrics are full of moments of truth and reality and Chesney carries his words proudly and strongly.

While the country crooner sings of serious life changes, the majority of the album is full of Chesney longing for his carefree college days.

Chesney’s voice and attitude were made for carefree, fun songs (think “How Forever Feels” and “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy”), but on his latest album, upbeat tracks like “Keg in the Closet” and “I Go Back” don’t come close to past hits.

The free-spirited Chesney finally comes out, however, in the sunny tropical tune “When the Sun Goes Down,” a duet with Uncle Kracker. With no cares or worries, Chesney grooves along to the sound of steel guitar and drums, setting up an image so vivid, one can almost feel the sand between the toes.

“When the Sun Goes Down” doesn’t carry the catchy singalongs of Chesney’s past two albums. It does, however, prove Chesney is willing to dip into the emotions of adulthood — he just doesn’t realize it yet.

— Katie Piepel

Kanye West

“College Dropout” (Roc-A-Fella)

Compare to: Nas, Common, Atmosphere

Usually, when hip-hop producers pick up a mic (e.g. Jermaine Dupri, P. Diddy), most people want to cover their ears.

But on producer/rapper Kanye West’s “The College Dropout,” it’s time to listen as closely as possible.

Best known as a producer for such artists as Jay-Z and Talib Kweli, the Chicago-born West’s debut album is innovative, inspirational and even instructional — in a way.

In “The New Workout Plan,” West pokes fun at prospective groupies by educating them on how to please their respective rapper/athlete, with lyrics like “Give head, stop, breathe, get up, check your weave / Don’t drop the blunt and disrespect the weed.”

Though it may be his first effort, West joins the ranks of the best storytellers in hip-hop, painting pictures with his words that you can’t help but visualize.

In the album’s first single, “Through the Wire,” West takes the listener back to his October 2003 car accident, which left him with a plate in his jaw. The imagery is so vivid, it sends chills down the spine (the first verse of the song was picked as Rhyme of the Year by The Source). West even rapped the song while his jaw was still wired shut, hence the title.

West doesn’t stop there with “Dropout,” creating some of the most inventive and original beats and samples since the early days of the Neptunes. On “Jesus Walks,” the military drumbeats and methodic chants feel as if you’re really walking in heaven. West doesn’t stop there, using the one and only Harlem Boys Choir for hook and chorus on “Two Words.”

The release of “College Dropout” solidifies West’s role as one of the leading ambassadors of the future of hip-hop and charts the course for him to one day be at the top of the modern rap game.

— Josh Madden

Lostprophets

“Start Something” (Columbia)

Compare to: Unloco, Seether,Puddle of Mudd

This sophomore effort from the Lostprophets isn’t terrible — but it’s also not terribly unique.

As just another cookie-cutter hard rock band, Lostprophets shifts from harmonizing scream ballads about lost love to despairing laments about holding on for better days.

The album’s first track, “We Still Kill the Old Way,” opens with almost a full minute of guitar solo before breaking into the not-so-hard-hitting “So here we go again / Another time, but it feels the same.” Another day, another album, another step on the way to corporate rock stardom † la Hoobastank and Linkin Park.

“Start Something” is full of repetitive and uninspired lyrics that seem to try harder to rhyme than to really say anything. This can be heard in the predictable lines throughout “Make a Move,” which whine “So are we lost or do we know / Which direction we should go / Cause every day we’re getting older / And every day we all get colder.” In other words, today sucks, but we’ll gut it out anyway.

The album bounces between the lyrical themes of “time will heal all wounds” and “love loss sucks.” Each track begins with a new and interesting guitar riff that is almost immediately swallowed up by power chords and drum beats, only to tentatively re-emerge beneath the British wailing of frontman Ian Watkins.

“Start Something” is the type of album someone could turn on and not pay any attention to. The only place ears might perk up is near the end with the lighter Eve-6ish “Last Summer,” the only song that concentrates on melodic vocals and syncopated guitar.

The grand finale is the 10-minute “Sway,” which melts from a mournful falsetto harmony to xylophones, with a deep voiceover saying “I’m telling you the truth.”

The truth? This album isn’t worth shelling out $2.50 to buy on eBay.

— Krista Driscoll