Contrary to most rock bands that scream to get attention, Woven is one that whispers its secrets softly into your ear. With their five-song debut on EPrime, Woven expertly fuses elements of rock, electronica and trip-hop to create a totally unique sound.

The music on EPrime ranges from brooding to downright creepy. The first track “Beautiful” unravels a catchy melody, accompanied by subtle guitar tweaks and a haunting blend of vocals. Singer/guitarist/programmer Ory Hodis manages to tingle the spine with his emotional crooning.

Mutilated synthetic sounds and eerie lyrics (“Hovering white gown / Sailing / Slowly / Only you are / Too far to reach”) are evident in “Tesion.” There seems to be a lot of guitar experimentation here to achieve different effects. Add the sinister background vocals and you’ve got an impressive gothic rock song.

The short instrumental “Steady” is accentuated by a seamless mix of organic drums and bass. The result is a soothing and somewhat peaceful experience.

Another soulful track is “Who Knows,” which makes use of an acoustic guitar coupled with distorted noise samples. Once again, Hodis’ strong vocals prove electrifying and otherworldly.

Perhaps “Solder Me” is the most emotionally-driven track, where Hodis sings: “Its easy / To cling to the old no matter how much it hurts / Put down the blame / Forgive the wombless / Mother” and is followed by a crunchy and intense climax.

There is a 10-minute hidden track that plays with more distorted tweaks. Using various odd noises and what sounds like groaning spirits coming out of nowhere, it is quite chilling. It’s a marvel how a new band can deftly combine art and innovation. Woven’s music maintains a peculiar balance between relief and tension, the organic and synthetic, the sublime and bizarre.

Their hybrid of sound bleeds gothic, but not vulgar. The lyrics are consciously emotional yet strangely enigmatic. EPrime is a tour de force in musical experimentation.

It’s a sound trip to the underworld that leaves the listener delightfully lightheaded. This album is a must-have.

He is the biggest-selling Spanish language artist in the world and has just released a brand new album.

Enrique Iglesias’s Escape separates itself from his previous work. On other albums, such as Enrique, Iglesias gravitated to a more pop-oriented sound. On occasion, he tossed in some Spanish songs into the mix. In effect, the two factors fused to make the album an overnight success and land several platinum titles. However, on this new album, Iglesias veers from the generality of pop-music and into other categories as well. This disc successfully incorporates R&B, rock, dance and Spanish attributes.

Though the ballads aren’t concise, they are worth full attention. On Escape, Iglesias displays his tastes for not only dance and R&B, but also divulges his tastes for rock inspired music. Upon knowing this small fact, finding influences from other bands is not hard. But, you must listen closely. It may not be the material of the ’80s, The Police, or even Bruce Springsteen, but it takes a step in that course. Enrique broadens his horizons.

He sets a new standard for artists to follow, setting a trend to diversify their styles of lyrics and complimentary instrumental backgrounds. At first, like many albums, Escape resounds in a flourish of crooning anthems handing out love counseling.

Nevertheless, contrasts scuttle through the cracks and saturate Escape. The first track, “Escape,” carves itself into a fast paced composition with an engaging beat. It certainly does not mimic his average songs that he released in the past. “Escape” ends with gusto as “You Can’t Escape My Love” chants to finish out the song.

The next track “Don’t Turn off the Lights” has an African-inspired background, (the chorus chants Eei-Eei-A), but sounds much like the first track. It seems like a future prospect for a hit.

Up to this point, the album seems to be playing pretty smoothly as one adjusts to his new style. “Love To See You Cry” kicks off with a great, unforeseen bass solo and flows into a more Spanish style. He then plays around with the keyboard to introduce the first aspect of dance-like music.

Sure it seems like a surprise, and also a bit odd, that Iglesias chooses a song which admits that he loves to see a woman cry.

Odd, but the instruments he chooses signal intensity and assertiveness. It has the capability to be a hit. Hopefully, the rarity of its message will not underscore its other, more positive aspects within the music.

Unfortunately, it will probably be one of those tracks that only the person that owns the album will get to enjoy.

Of course, there must be something missing . you got it, a new rendition of an already perfect classic. Iglesias tries his hand at “I Will Survive.” The ending result does not prove itself to be a good effort. Nevertheless, the next song, “Love For Fun” again has potential and includes an African type of gist.

As a Spanish artist, Iglesias continues his devotion to the Spanishculture and its music. Concluding the album, Inglesias caps off his artistry with three Spanish versions of previous songs from the beginning of the album. For the average English-speaking American, even these tracks participate in the overall effect. They continue to trap the ear and refuse to unlock their grip until the final words are sung. Iglesias’ attempt to try his hands at new music genres makes the grade. “Escape” sparkles with experimental rhythm and varied instrumental inclusions with numerous sprinkles of emotional ballads. Truly a successful “Escape” from the monotonous reality of pop-music.

On Monday, Nov. 6 Pink Floyd released their new retrospective album Echoes-The Best of Pink Floyd. The compilation, available as a two-CD set, features over two hours and 20 minutes of some of the best Pink Floyd tracks ever recorded, assembled with the active participation of band members David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright.

The 26 titles are selected from throughout the band’s career, from its psychedelic debut, led by original guitarist Syd Barrett in 1967, to releases from the mid ’90s.

This album provides a worthy representation of the genre-splitting band, and is an excellent addition to any Floyd fan’s collection. Though it is a greatest-hits compilation, Echoes keeps with Pink Floyd’s tradition of unified, conceptual albums.

Its tracks are not organized chronologically; they are arranged so that the album flows from one track to the next in a seamless whole. The titles selected include classic rock legends such as “Another Brick in the Wall Part 2” and “Money,” as well as lesser-known songs like “The Fletcher Memorial Home.” “When the Tigers Broke Free,” a song taken from the movie soundtrack to The Wall, has never before been released on CD. Echoes does a surprisingly good job of catching the spirit of Pink Floyd, and is a great album for Pink Floyd fans both old and new.

Though Pink Floyd has many older fans, they have continued to entrance younger generations for years. The band sells nearly 1,000,000 catalog albums each year worldwide. Dark Side of the Moon, one of the top-10, best-selling CDs of all time, sells more than 8,000 copies a week in America alone.

The fact that Pink Floyd is still able to sell so many CDs proves that they are continuing to gain fans. With the release of Echoes-The Best of Pink Floyd it can be sure that young fans will be discovering the music of Pink Floyd for many more years to come.

Lenny Kravitz’s new album, Lenny, is a mix of classic rock, blues, alternative and techno sounds. Yes: I said techno.

We aren’t talking raving techno, but there are definitely some techno undertones present in the new album. Tracks 2 (If I Could Fall in Love), 5 (Believe in Me) and 10 (You Were in My Heart) have obvious techno sounds.

This isn’t new to Kravitz fans. Many of the sounds on Lenny are reminiscent of Kravitz’s 1998 release, 5. “Black Velveteen,” track 4 on 5, was hardly recognizable as the Kravitz of the past because of his strong techno influences in the song.

The emergence of techno beats in Kravitz’s music is evidence that he has moved into a sound of his own. Since the release of his first album, Let Love Rule, in 1989, critics have said Lenny is a victim of his precursors.

The title track of Let Love Rule sounds suspiciously like Jimmy Hendrix reincarnated. Like many of the songs on Let Love Rule, “I Build This Garden for Us” sounds very Beatlesque.

So, they had a point back then, but whoever said sounding like Hendrix or the Beatles was a bad thing?

Hendrix and Beatles sounds are still present in Kravitz’s music today, but their influence is much subtler. “Yesterday is Gone,” track 3 on the new album, sounds a bit like the Beatles’ “Don’t Let Me Down” Hendrix’s guitar influence can be heard on several tracks including number 6, “Pay to Play.”

Lenny delivers what fans have grown to expect from a Kravitz album: sensual lyrics delivered by an expressive voice and a unique sound.