Gordon Lightfoot Book, Music and More!

With singer-keyboardist Steve Bays’ yelping vocals and cascading curls, Canada’s Hot Hot Heat has stood out from the synth-pop pack. Bays’ inventive wordplay and the band’s retro sound haven’t hurt its profile either. Taking more chances musically, including tribal drums on “Harmonicas and Tambourines” and orchestral strings on “Outta Heart,” the group’s latest CD is a welcome stretch. But HHH”s pogo-ing fans needn’t worry: “Let Me In” and “My Best Fiend” are tailor-made for the dancefloor. Sept. 11

If an artist can be judged by the company he keeps, Joe Henry gets top marks. He has produced artists as diverse and accomplished as Ani DiFranco, Aimee Mann, Solomon Burke, Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint. Along the way, Henry’s own albums have grown increasingly dark and sophisticated. His latest is no exception. Numbers like “Civil War,” featuring the nostalgic piano of Van Dyke Parks, and “Our Song,” about meeting a disenchanted Willie Mays in Home Depot, are haunting elegies to America. Sept. 11

Swedish music generally breaks down into the garage-rock of The Hives or the dream-pop of The Cardigans. Warm and fuzzy, The Perishers’ sound definitely belongs in the latter camp. No wonder the group, led by singer-guitarist Ola Klüft, has been featured on TV’s The O.C. and opened for Sarah McLachlan. Still, the band’s third album has its share of surprises. Despite Hallmark titles like “Get Well” and “To Start Anew,” the band’s hopeful songs are melodically fresh, lyrically astute and—best of all—cliché-free. Sept. 4