Serena Ryder
The Funeral (MapleMusic)
Perhaps realizing that topping the original’s triumphant rock bombast was a hopeless task, Canuck songstress Ryder keeps her Band of Horses cover subdued, letting the melodies shine through.

Iron and Wine
The Trapeze Swinger (Sub Pop)
Ever listen to an Iron and Wine song and wish it didn’t have to end, and that you could just lose yourself in Sam Beam’s sweet, mellow crooning for hours? Well, clocking in at nine-and-a-half minutes, “The Trapeze Swinger” is as close as you’re likely to get.

Gossip
Heavy Cross (Columbia)
With Rick Rubin in the producer’s chair, Beth Ditto and company kick out a hard-hitting, soul-blasted joint with a groove so funky that it might take you a couple of listens to notice there’s no chorus. Or maybe it’s all chorus.

Depeche Mode
Corrupt (EMI)
Well, it’s no “Personal Jesus”, but this track’s evil fuzz-guitar riff makes it the coolest thing Depeche Mode has done since then.

Silversun Pickups
The Royal We (Dangerbird)
Silversun Pickups main man Brian Aubert has evidently decided that the way to make charging, distortion-strafed alt-rock even more rad is to add a string quartet. Who are we to argue?

Endangered Ape
Tales of a Survivalist Horror Pt. 1
Ooky-spooky organs and clattering metal-machine percussion make for a noise-core opus that plays out like something ripped from the last reel of a grainy, file-under-“exploitation” ’70s horror flick. The horror, indeed.

Camera Obscura
Swans (4AD)
Scottish riot-nerrrds throw a handful of Americana-brand dirt into their fabulously fey pop. Look out Belle and Sebastian, you’ve got someone gunning for your crown.

Ape School
The Underground (Independent)
The first half of “The Underground” finds the normally electro-minded Ape School working a vibe that’s the Handsome Family sweetened with a shot of old-fashioned freak folk. And then things get weird. Very weird.

Apostle of Hustle
Eazy Speaks (Arts & Crafts)
Singer-guitarist Andrew Whiteman may call the Centre of the Universe home, but damn if he doesn’t sound like he’s straight outta Cuba on this world-tinted indie rocker that may or may not pay tribute to the late Eric Lynn Wright.

Tiga
Shoes (Last Gang)
An elasticized bass line and synths that haven’t been used since 1984 form the backdrop for a stupidly catchy jam about hand-holding, hair-brushing, and whether one’s shoes really need to come off.

St. Vincent
Marrow (4AD)
Spaced-out art-pop queen Annie Clark gets her funk on, bringing Tower of Power horns to the dance and then giving the whole sexed-up mess a jolt of 220-volt guitar violence that would give Jack White a boner.