DELTA GOODREM

"Delta"

(Mercury/Decca)

The grandiose elements of Delta Goodrem's "Delta" don't negate the core of the polished release: the humble traits of its star performer.

Although "Delta" is her U.S. debut, Goodrem, 23, is already a sensation in her native Australia and a hitmaker around the world. The new release (her third overall) is slickly produced, yet the honesty she projects makes it easy to imagine Goodrem, under less fortunate circumstances, on a modest career track, an earnest singer/pianist pouring out her soul in tiny clubs across her homeland.

"Delta" also reflects uncommon maturity for a young-adult singer, even one with such a smoky and well-rounded voice. However, Goodrem's history -- becoming an Aussie superstar and also battling Hodgkin's lymphoma while she was just a teen-ager -- put her on life's fast track.

Her self-titled project sounds like the work of an old pro. On "Delta," Goodrem packs the honest and uplifting qualities of her mentor, Olivia Newton-John, plus the stylized bombast of Celine Dion, the sense of adventure of Madonna, the introspection of Alanis Morissette and the vocal stunts of Mariah Carey.

It only takes one listen to the giant power-pop first single, "In This Life," to confirm Goodrem's broad reach as a performer. And she follows through with everything from the fun electronica/reggae of "You Will Only Break My Heart" to the stately ballad, "Angels in the Room," from the vulnerable cancer-fighter of "Possessionless" to the ethereal dreamer of "One Day."

There's a bit of pandering going on with the hokey hip-hop nuances of "Barehands" and "Brave Face" as well as too much Dion-esque grandstanding, which temporarily gets in the way of Goodrem's seeming sincerity. Plus there's the question of whether there's much of an audience in the United States these days for new, upbeat adult-pop songs.

Fortunately for Goodrem, she's already made her place in the world and doesn't need America to validate her.

XIMENA SARINANA

"Mediocre"

(Warner Music Latina)

Actors often have the ego to want to record music though not the good sense to refrain. Witness Scarlett Johansson's dreadful "Anywhere I Lay My Head" from earlier this year. Singing actors also tend to avoid being overly histrionic by scaling down their performances too much -- again, witness Johansson's near-comatose delivery on "Anywhere."

Yet Mexican actress Ximena Sarinana, 22, sounds like a natural on her new "Mediocre," only occasionally slipping into a too-casual style and, by contrast, only once stretching too far out of her comfort zone (on a moody "Un Error" that arcs into a ruckus).

Americans who haven't heard of Sarinana won't have an anti-actor bias against "Mediocre." However, unless she pulls some kind of Shakira-sized crossover (which is unlikely), non-Spanish-speaking Americans likely will never even hear the non-English release.

"Mediocre" is a pop-jazz fusion recorded in Buenos Aires and produced by Argentinian Tweety Gonzalez and Uruguayan Juan Campodonico. Yet to its credit, the release often sounds no more exotic than a typical piano-based singer-songwriter project by a young American woman.

"Mediocre" does kick off with a regal title-track opener that pits classic "lazy" verses against bold, belting choruses. But then it settles into the meandering soul of "Vidas Paraleleas," the smoldering sleekness of "Sintiendo Rara," the electronic modulations of "La Tina" and the sophisticated cocktail music of "Pocas Palabras (Juan)."

Sarinana's understated, inviting vocals are a solid fit for the warm rhythms, and she generally holds her own against the sometimes-florid arrangements, even bringing them down to earth from time to time.

Given her age, her talent and her dual career in entertainment, chances are we'll be hearing much more from Sarinana. Or at least Latin America will.

UNKLE

"End Titles ... Stories for Film"

(Surrender All)

UNKLE has always been a collaborative effort, with British DJ James Lavelle anchoring the project. Over its first three albums, Lavelle recruited such diverse artists as Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke, Mike D of the Beastie Boys, Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age and Metallica bassist Jason Newsted.

In its liner notes, Lavelle dubbed "End Titles . . . Stories for Films" as "not a new album in the usual sense, but new music that has been inspired by the moving image." It's an apt description.

Though there are 22 tracks, only 10 are proper songs, with the rest short, cinematic musical interludes (with the exception of "Trouble in Paradise," a cathartic, five-minute classical composition with strings, piano, dramatic horns and racing, plucked violins). Principal singer this time is relatively unknown Brit Gavin Clark, whose raspy, aching voice adds pleasant heft to Lavelle's songs.

The atmospheric, orchestral "Cut Me Loose" recalls U2 and Bauhaus, while "Ghosts" and "Blade in the Back" borrow the bluesy swagger of Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus. Nocturnal" combines the expansive anthemic rock of Coldplay with David Byrne's otherworldly vocals; and "Can't Hurt" throws a change-up with the blase, bohemian cool of Beck.

"End Titles" probably won't find much commercial success, but Lavelle has certainly succeeded artistically: When the album reaches its solemn end, you almost expect to see credits rolling.

Pod Picks: "Cut Me Loose," "Can't Hurt," "Trouble in Paradise."

BOB DYLAN

"Down the Tracks: The Music that Influenced Bob Dylan"

(Eagle Media)

Bob Dylan seems to bring the armchair scholar out of everyone.

In the latest derivative documentary on rock 'n' roll's unwilling crown prince, a half-dozen of them lead us down a very familiar path chock full of warmed-over insights into our most celebrated living musician.

There is no fresh material here. Dylan's influences have been obvious for more than 40 years. And while the uninitiated might find "Down the Tracks" helpful, anyone with even a thimbleful of Dylan knowledge will find this old news.

Dylan is an enigma, a chameleon and a trickster. Just when you think you've got him nailed down, he says or does something unexpected.

Pushing him into neat little boxes like "Down the Tracks" director Steve Gammond tries to do isn't worth the effort, and his attempt to liven things up with appearances by artists like The Handsome Family and Stacey Earle mostly fail.

Most irksome is a nearly complete lack of Dylan performances, footage or interviews. We get a few minutes of fuzzy images of home video quality, but little else. And what little interesting footage there is of Dylan influences like Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie and Blind Willie McTell is often marred by voiceovers.

Anyone looking for keen insight on Dylan would be better off getting it from a documentary like "Don't Look Back" from the 1960s. Or even better, take home Martin Scorsese's "No Direction Home," which features a cagey Dylan at his confounding and contradictory best.

21

(2008, 123 min.)

Dir.: Robert Luketic

Kevin Spacey offers a lesson to academics everywhere on how to beat the high cost of living. Spacey plays a brilliant, greedy Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor who leads a team of math-whiz students (Kate Bosworth and Jim Sturgess among them), the gang developing a card-counting scheme to take Vegas casinos to the cleaners at the blackjack table. Single-disc DVD, two-disc DVD and single-disc Blu-ray releases include three behind-the-scenes featurettes plus commentary with director Robert Luketic. The two-disc DVD set also comes with a digital copy of the movie for computers and portable video players. Single-disc DVD, $28.96; two-disc DVD set, $34.95; Blu-ray, $38.96. (Sony)

DOOMSDAY

(2008, 120 min.)

Dir.: Neil Marshall

Thirty years after a plague in Great Britain prompts authorities to seal off the island with a wall, the deadly virus emerges again. A military unit is dispatched into the quarantine zone to find a cure among the savage society that has sprung up among the British survivors. The DVD has both the R-rated theatrical version and an unrated cut adding more footage, plus a couple of background featurettes. The Blu-ray disc has the unrated cut accompanied by cast interviews and behind-the-scenes material that can be accessed while watching the movie. Director Neil Marshall and some of the cast provide commentary on the unrated version. DVD, $29.98; Blu-ray, $39.98. (Universal)

THE MUMMY

(2008, 125 min.)

Dir.: Stephen Sommers

THE MUMMY RETURNS

(2008, 130 min.)

Dir.: Stephen Sommers

THE SCORPION KING

(2008, 92 min.)

Dir.: Chuck Russell

Ancient Egypt joins the Blu-ray age as "The Mummy," its first sequel and the spinoff "The Scorpion King" arrive on high-definition discs in advance of the Aug. 1 big-screen release of "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor." "The Mummy" and "The Mummy Returns" pit Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz against mean old dead guy Arnold Vosloo, while "Scorpion King" turns Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's villainous character from "Mummy Returns" into a hero leading a band of freedom fighters against an evil warlord. Blu-ray discs, $29.98 each. (Universal)