Gordon Lightfoot Book, Music and More!

With Jack White’s recently revealed relationship to Canada’s Natalie MacMaster and Ashley MacIsaac (distant cousins), you might expect to hear some Celtic fiddle on the Stripes’ latest release. Instead, we get bagpipes on tracks like “St. Andrew (This Battle is in the Air)” and the anthemic “Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn.” There’s also mariachi trumpet on the wacky “Conquest,” once sung by Patti Page. But mostly, it’s another blues-drenched, deliciously thumping classic from the Motor City’s best garage-rock duo. June 19

Moore came up in the shadows of Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and others, and was treated with even less respect than those pop tarts. Moore’s acting career hasn’t fared much better. But the 23-year-old is now making a serious stab at musical credibility with this collection of songs co-written with the Weepies, Lori McKenna, Rachael Yamagata and Chantal Kreviazuk. Although hardly provocative, the substance of “Extraordinary,” “Gardenia” and “Ladies Choice” is the promising sound of a pop princess growing up. June 19

What is it about Vancouver and Black Sabbath? First there was Black Mountain and its lo-fi offshoot Pink Mountaintops, both of which clearly worshipped at the altar of Britain’s gods of noize. Now along comes this new four-piece band that is equally indebted to Sabbath’s heavy-metal thunder. Pride Tiger’s debut album is a modern metalhead’s dream, from the boisterous opener “Let It Go” and the boogie workout “What It Is” to the voodoo crunch of “White Witch Woman Blues.” Ozzy’s progeny. June 19