METALLICA

Death Magnetic ****
Mercury 177326, £11.99

"What don't kill ya make ya more strong" sings James Hetfield in the poundingly complex 'Broken, Beat And Scarred', aptly a paraphrase of everyone's favourite heavy metal philosopher, Nietzsche.

Apt because this album represents the rock monster's rehabilitation. Having concluded that 13 years working with Bob Rock was becoming unlucky, Rick Rubin has been installed in the production chair and has restored what made Metallica so revered in the first place.

Only three of the 10 songs clock in under seven minutes, and every one is a feast of complex time signatures, face-aching guitar solos and thundering drum patterns.

The centrepiece is 'All Nightmare Long', fingers hurtling up and down fretboards and a surprisingly hooky chorus. Every track sounds like several songs in one, prog rock behemoths that persuade through brute force and continuous invention.

There is meant to be a morbid theme – surprise, surprise! – but it is hard to discern under the sheer weight of this instrumental assault. The notion is that some of rock's fraternity find themselves irresistibly drawn to death's magnetic force. Lyrics remain laughable if well intentioned throughout.

'Suicide And Redemption' tickles 10 minutes long and veers from one extreme to another, with even a hint of Wishbone Ash's guitar duelling in the tune's mellower moments.

Download this: Broken, Beat & Scarred; The Day That Never Comes

ROCK & POP

GROOVE ARMADA

Lovebox Festivals And Fiestas ****
Lovebox LVBOXCD001, £11.99

Groove Armada sprinkle the studio fairy dust on a diverse collection of tunes from the alumni from their annual bash in London. Tom Findlay takes charge and most of the credit for the first disc of this double, including a sublime sequence of Blondie's 'Hanging On The Telephone' into Flaming Lips' 'Do You Realise' then Toots & The Maytals' '54-46'. Andy Cato wrestles with the more obvious club fodder from Frankie Knuckles and GA themselves, on the second disc, delivering sonic sunshine from the duo's Ibiza sets.

Download this: All of disc one

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

The Block **
Polydor1783568, £11.99

Hauling themselves out of domesticity, having dusted down the pop idol personas, one of the original boy bands re-emerge in the knowledge their original fan base is happy to welcome them back. They are peddling grown-up R'n'B like 'Summertime' and 'Click Click Click', but it all sounds a bit arthritic next to a spry young thing like Justin Timberlake. Lyrical references to Grey's Anatomy in '2 In The Morning' is all a bit thirtysomething. The allusion to Marvin Gaye's 'Sexual Healing' is clumsy, as is the reference to Aretha's 'Chain Of Fools' on 'Grown Man'.

Download this: Big Girl Now, Full Service

MANDA RIN

My DNA ***
This Is Fake DIY, £9.99

As the female third of Scots disco punk sensations Bis, Amanda McKinnon was an unsigned teenage singer making history by appearing on Top Of The Pops.

Twelve years later her first solo album retains much of that energy, all taut bass lines and chirruping electronic keyboards, exemplified by the vibrant bounce of the title song. The formula is enlivened by inventive electric guitar parts on 'Typeface', while 'Guilty Pleasure' is deliciously frivolous, but next time out it would be nice to hear something with just a little more depth.

Download this: My DNA, Typeface

COLIN SOMERVILLE

JAZZ

KENNY DAVERN & BOB WILBER

Summit At The March Of Jazz 1994-1996 ****
Arbors Records ARDVD-3, £14.99

Any time the late clarinettist Kenny Davern and soprano saxophonist/clarinettist Bob Wilber got together, they produced thrilling jazz – and four sets of their summit meetings, plus a bonus featuring saxophonist Flip Phillips, are featured on this new DVD release. The leaders aside, the line-up of these summits was drawn from an impressive pool of talent – and that variety is reflected by the fact that pianists Dick Hyman and Ralph Sutton, guitarists Bucky Pizzarelli and George Van Eps, and bassists Milt Hinton and Phil Flanigan all appear on this DVD.

THE JOHN BUNCH TRIO

Plays The Music Of Irving Berlin (Except One) ****
Arbors Records ARCD 19376, £14.99

Veteran pianist John Bunch's playing was one of the highlights of this year's Nairn Jazz Festival, and here he is joined by one of his colleagues from the 2007 event – Basie band flautist Frank Wess. Both men are in their late eighties, but you wouldn't know it from the playful, graceful and swinging jazz they serve up – Saga should sign them up as poster boys. Bassist John Webber and guitarist Frank Vignola give the ideal accompaniment.

Download this: Coquette, How Deep Is The Ocean

ALISON KERR

FOLK

TOM McCONVILLE

Tommy On Song ****
Tomcat Music TCCD07, £12.99

From a Tyneside base, this one-man ceilidh has been taking his uplifting, smiling music round the country for decades. Here he's accompanied by old pals, including fellow (Irish) Geordie Claire Mann on flute, fiddle and backing vocals, and fretmaster Aaron Jones, in an album of contemporary 'folk' songs by writers ranging from Mark Knopfler to Archie Fisher. It's a celebration of his homeland and its people, erupting occasionally into enthusiastic fiddle-driven Scots reels, Irish jigs or classic James Hill tunes like 'Gateshead Hornpipe'.

Download this: Fiddle Farewell

SOLAS

For Love And Laughter ****
Compass Records 744902, £11.99

The classy and flashy Irish/American quintet, led by multi-instrumentalist Seamus Egan, join their highly skilled and creative chops with input from Canada's nu-folkies the Dukhs, added bass and percussion, and Alasdair Fraser's favourite cellist Natalie Haas. So it's a big polished sound, with new singer Mairead Phelan tackling traditional songs plus 'Merry-Go-Round' by Antje Duvekot and the Rickie Lee Jones favourite 'Sailor Song'. This mix of lounge bar Celtic and country might not be to everyone's taste, but it's exceptionally well performed.

Download this: Sunday's Waltz/Solo Double Oh

NORMAN CHALMERS

CLASSICAL

JAMES GILCHRIST

Romantic Residues *****
Hyperion CDA67725, £12.99

The title of this CD comes from American composer Alec Roth's setting of nine poems by Vikram Seth, here orchestrated for flute, harp and solo tenor. The poetry is affecting and contemporary, whether concerning a meeting for coffee or a suitcase emerging on an airport carousel.

Further arrangements of songs by Benjamin Britten, Howard Skempton, Ravel, Saint-Saëns and others, make this a highly enjoyable recording that deserves a wider audience.

Throughout, Gilchrist gives a finely enunciated, crisp reading of the texts which makes the whole so much more than the sum of its parts.

Download this: Round And Round

ANTONÍN DVORÁK

Symphony No 9, From The New World *****
Naxos 8.570714, £5.99

At the age of 50, Antonín Dvorák followed millions of Europeans and took ship for America. In his case, it wasn't pogrom or poverty that drove him; instead it was a job offer, as director of New York's National Conservatory of Music.

The job only lasted four years, but it produced some of Dvorák's best-known music, such as this work.

Here, Marin Alsop conducts the Baltimore Symphony in a strong recording of Dvorák's hymn to America, together with his earlier Symphonic Variations. Like the symphony, the performance is confident, well rounded and highly optimistic.

Download this: Largo

ALEXANDER BRYCE