The Straight’s highly subjective rundown of songs you need to download this week

Mariah Carey
“Touch My Body” (Sony)
Even after all these years, Queen Crazy’s sex-cat cooing still has men surprised she even has to ask.

Gnarls Barkley
“Run (I’m a Natural Disaster)” (Warner)
Cee-Lo and Danger Mouse riff on some seriously frantic, Fifth Dimension–style psych-funk, making the case that this is the dawning of the age of Aquarius.

Beach House
“All the Years” (Haven)
The Hawaiian slack-key guitars dream up sunny days on the sand, while icy organs and Victoria Legrand’s frigid delivery bring you
back to the reality of what’s been a freakishly freezing Vancouver spring.

R.E.M.
“Supernatural Superserious” (Warner)
After years and years of near-death, this alternative-nation giant is resurrected. Next miracle: Michael Stipe gets his hair back.

Ladytron
“Black Cat” (Nettwerk)
A buzzing slice of synthetic evil boasting a pounding drum loop and Mira Aroyo’s deadpan Bulgarian sprechgesang. By the time you notice it’s all beat and no hook, it’s over.

Portishead
“Machine Gun” (Island)
Was it worth waiting 11 years to hear Beth Gibbons moaning mournfully over a stuttering lo-fi beat and minimalist analogue-synth tones? Perhaps not, but it still makes for a weirdly haunting listen.

Be Your Own Pet
“The Kelly Affair” (Universal)
Snarling surf-punk, wherein bombshell bassist Jemina Pearl howls about how living in Los Angeles is dangerous thanks to all the cheap pills and nonstop sex. Fuck rehab, not to mention condoms—let’s party.

Zimmers Hole
“Anonymous Esophagus” (Century Media)
Wonder why ’bangers aren’t exactly considered prize catches on Lavalife? This molten blast of political incorrectness will clear things up with lines like “Now hush, no time to talk/Just get down there and suck on my cock.”

The Helio Sequence
“Keep Your Eyes Ahead” (Sub Pop)
With its soaring, reverb-drenched vocals, this luminous, yearning, indie-pop winner will make you think about all the good shit you should have been listening to in the ’90s instead of the Stone Temple Toilets.

We Are Scientists
“After Hours” (EMI)
Relentlessly driving, post-Williamsburg new wave that gives you a good idea what Interpol might sound like if they cheered up and ditched the black duds for the dance floor.

Los Campesinos!
“Death to Los Campesinos!” (Arts & Crafts)
The band’s name suggests either instro-rockers or that pain-in-the-ass mariachi band in The Heartbreak Kid. Brace yourself, then, for sticks-on-first-listen, guys-and-girls indie pop from the
U.K. that’s practically bursting with pep.

The Teenagers
“Feeling Better” (XL)
Great, not because it sounds like long-lost synth-pop gold from the Pretty in Pink soundtrack, but because the Teenagers are brutally honest. After acknowledging that their fans might be lonely, they respond with “We don’t care/Just buy our T-shirts.”

The Kills
“U.R.A. Fever” (Domino)
A ticking sex bomb from two permanently wasted Warhol junkies. Hotter than the spoon you cook it with.