G-UNIT

"T.O.S.: Terminate On Sight"

(G-Unit/Interscope)

50 Cent's ruthless streak has been well documented. He's had several very public spats with appers (Ja Rule, Fat Joe, The Game) and actresses (Vivica Fox). And he's even booted former protege Young Buck from the actual G-Unit group -- now officially just 50, Lloyd Banks and Tony Yayo. (Recently, 50 circulated a taped conversation of Buck crying and begging him for money. Buck has retaliated with a diss track called "Taped Conversation." )

That backstory gives much needed context to the hardcore, synth-heavy beats of "T.O.S.: Terminate on Sight," G-Unit's second group album. The disc is just as angry and aggressive as 50 seems these days. Over the muddy bass line of disc opener, "Straight Outta Southside," 50 barks his guntalk: "I'm Charles Bronson, Dirty Harry with the cannon/ you shooting blanks, you ain't hit/ ... I'm still standing." Meanwhile, throughout the disc, Banks and Yayo contribute equally cocky boasts. "Cartier glasses, Cartier belt/ Cartier watch tell me time somewhere else/ like Germany, Sweden or Serbia" brags Yayo over the keyboard stabs of "Piano Man."

At 18 tracks of similar testosterone-charged bombast, the disc gets tiresome for all but the G-Unit loyalist. Yet 50 is savvy. He adds slight variety to the mix -- dancehall star Mavado on the reggae-tinged "Let It Go" and requisite thug love jams ("I Like The Way She Do It," "Close To Me," "Kitty Kat"). And even Young Buck (who's still signed to G-Unit Records) is featured on a few mediocre cameos despite the beef. 50's merely covering his bases by placing business before personal concerns, as the closing song title states: "Money Make the World Go Round."

CHECK OUT THIS TRACK: Over the deceptively bouncy drum kicks of "You So Tough," 50's chilling hook mocks an unnamed block bully: "You so tough/ tough until your heartbeat stop/ the tray-pound pop/ your arteries shot/ you bleeding in shock/ get in the pine box."

VANESSA HUDGENS

"Identified"

(Hollywood)

While the second installment of "High School Musical" was extremely successful, that might not be the case for Vanessa Hudgens' second album, "Identified."

The follow-up to her gold debut, "V," "Identified" shows Hudgens hasn't really grown musically in the two years since that album's release -- her voice remains weak and uninspiring. The CD adds to her problems with subpar material.

"I'm tired of the boys who don't like to dance/And if you don't like to dance you don't stand a chance," she sings on the first single, "Sneakernight." The song, produced by JR Rotem (Rihanna "SOS," Sean Kingston "Beautiful Girls"), is sophomoric and tailor-made for the Radio Disney-set. It is also indicative of the entire CD.

A few tunes suggest the promise that "Identified" fails to deliver. The title track is solid, as is "First Bad Habit. "Amazed," featuring Lil Mama, is arguably the album's best track: The lip-gloss queen and the Disney star may even see a Top 40 hit with this one. All those songs were produced by Dr. Luke (Kelly Clarkson "Since U Been Gone," Katy Perry "I Kissed a Girl"); Clearly he should have played a bigger role in this CD.

CHECK THIS OUT: "Don't Ask Why" features Hudgens at her best -- a nice voice minus the bubble-gum sound. She sounds clean, clear, and under control.

THE BLACK WATCH

"Icing the Snow Queen"

(Eskimo)

If you haven't heard of the indie-pop band The Black Watch, you're certainly in the majority.

But the two-decades-old group's new "Icing the Snow Queen" makes a fair case for getting to know them.

The Black Watch is a California-based band that sounds like a 1980s British group, thanks largely to its bracing swarm of guitars and the off-kilter, expressive vocals of singer/guitarist/keyboardist John Andrew Fredrick, the act's founder and lone consistent member.

In general, "Icing the Snow Queen" is wistful and narcotic, built on guitar-driven drones concocted by Fredrick and fellow guitarists Tim Boland and Scott Taylor. Yet the informal urgency of their distorted work creates an improbable lulling air, a chaotic hallucination that somehow inspires contented passivity.

The trippy sound becomes more interesting when it wobbles, rhythmically and vocally, like warped vinyl -- as it does on the tracks "Quartz Pink Cloud" and "Kindly Remind Me." Fredrick, who also is an English lecturer at UCLA and Santa Monica College, is especially intriguing (some might say annoying) as he strays off-key in his delivery.

There's an honesty in that, enhanced by his literate lyrics, fetching harmonies and an ongoing juxtaposition of moods.

"Icing the Snow Queen" won't make a household name of The Black Watch, but it'll inspire a niche following, however small.

KATHY GRIFFIN

"For Your Consideration"

(Red Int/Red Ink)

Kathy Griffin doesn't tell jokes, but she sure can tell a story.

The actress/comedian has parlayed her talent into an Emmy-winning hit Bravo reality show, "My Life on the D-List!" And now, in a semi-tongue-in-cheek bid for a Grammy, she releases the standup recording "For Your Consideration" -- which quite possibly will be nominated for what she calls a "weird category" of Grammy (e.g., comedy or spoken word).

Griffin's subjects don't sound particularly amusing or inventive: She talks about her cheap mom, makes fun of Oprah Winfrey and gets in some mean-spirited jabs at Marie Osmond.

But her dishy conversational style and the constant state of uproar in her devoted audience keep the momentum sailing along for a sometimes-explicit hour of outrageous moments.

Turns out her mom keeps an empty wine bottle around to fill with her customary boxed wine so she can fool visitors into thinking she has good taste. And yeah, come to think of it, it was ridiculous that Winfrey flew in Williams-Sonoma croissants for the people of Macon, Ga. Furthermore, after Griffin delineates Osmond's peculiarities, Donny's sister really does seem to be a "boiling pot of crazy."

It would be nearly impossible for listeners to replicate Griffin's material with a similar effect, which is a testimony to her powerful stage presence.

Perhaps now she should do the show on Broadway and shoot for a Tony.

THE TING TINGS

"We Started Nothing"

(Columbia)

The Ting Tings launch with a blast of flavorful effervescence on "We Started Nothing," stirring a rare excitement with the first two cuts. Then almost as quickly, the U.K. duo of Katie White and Jules De Martino goes flatter than a glass of tap water.

Before the Ting Tings lose their zing, they generate pure pop-rock bliss in the form of sassy opening tracks "Great DJ" and "That's Not My Name." The bracing and tension-packed former demonstrates that nontraditional pop (conventional only in its killer hook) can take an even edgier form than rock music. And the latter -- built on slapping beat, White's unnerved vocals and a biting cheerleader-esque chorus -- is virulently infectious.

Then "We Started Nothing" lands with a thud with a bland show of bustle. "Fruit Machine," sounds like little more than an uninspired reworking of "These Boots Are Made For Walkin'." It only gets lamer with the subsequent "Traffic Light," which comes across as a children's song that would bore even the most attentive toddler. It's as if White and De Martino couldn't be bothered to muster anything of interest.

The Ting Tings manage to flash through a couple of more inspiring moments -- a clanging "Shut Up and Let Me Go" that packs a hint of old disco vitality and the off-kilter jangle of the closing title track (that unfortunately lingers for more than six minutes). But most of "We Started Nothing" simply blanches in comparison to those first two songs.

The Ting Tings started something, all right. They just didn't finish it.

HANS YORK

"Young Amelia"

(Hazzazar)

Fair warning for those about to listen to Hans York's "Young Amelia" for the first time: Check your cynicism at the door or don't come in.

The bucolic, family friendly fold-out illustration on the cover is the first clue to the cheery material from the Seattle-based German native. Yet the artwork doesn't adequately indicate how far York will take his blithe disposition, which even perseveres in the sing-songy mellowness of a track about the death of a parent, "Letting Go."

York, an accomplished session guitarist with a dexterous knack for jazz, folk, pop and classical styles, goes for an Americana framework on the peppy opener "Tell Me Why," a bright tone-setter about being in love. And though "Young Amelia" goes through numerous stylistic transitions, York maintains his even keel, whether he's breezing though the impossibly upbeat churn of "Lifeline" or offering a quasi-rap on a more emphatic "Invocation" tempered by trombone.

"Young Amelia" is spiced with various combinations of mandolin, nylon string guitar, cello, dobro, upright bass and pedal steel, swinging the sound from the gentle airiness of "Snow" to the full-bodied ragtime of "Never Been in Love." But nothing blunts the mood of York, who meanders through the title track with lines like, "I wanna be your lover, giving you everything," rises over the chime and tinkle of "Ever Falling" with, "Time will tell, love with find a way" and joyously sings on "Brilliant Light," "Let your brilliant light shine! Let it shine!"

The guy really is hopeless.

VANTAGE POINT

(2008, 90 min.)

Dir.: Pete Travis

Someone's out to kill the president -- and this breakneck thriller applies a "Rashomon"-style multiple-viewpoint approach to tell and retell the story through the eyes of people at the epicenter. The same 15 minutes or so of action unfold again and again, each segment providing a different look and revealing more about what's actually happening during a shooting and explosion at the site of the U.S. leader's visit to a counterterrorism conference in Spain. The cast includes Dennis Quaid, William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver and Forest Whitaker. The single-disc DVD, double-disc DVD set and Blu-ray release have a deleted scene, cast and crew interviews and commentary with director Pete Travis. The two-disc DVD set also comes with a digital copy for portable video players. Single-disc DVD, $28.96; two-disc DVD set, $34.95; Blu-ray, $38.96. (Sony)

TYLER PERRY'S MEET THE BROWNS

(2008, 101 min.)

Dir.: Tyler Perry

The latest from director, writer and co-star Tyler Perry features Angela Bassett as a single mother struggling to raise three kids in Chicago who heads off to Georgia for the funeral of the father she never met -- and is initiated into the lively, crazy world of her kinfolk. The DVD is available in a bare-bones single-disc release or a two-disc set with four behind-the-scenes segments and a digital copy of the movie. A two-disc Blu-ray release also comes with a digital copy and has a few extra featurettes. Single-disc DVD, $29.95; two-disc DVD set, $34.98; Blu-ray, $39.99. (Lionsgate)

Also available in a three-disc set is "Tyler Perry's House of Payne: Volume Two," containing 20 more episodes of his TV comedy about a family dealing with real-life issues, from divorce and child custody to rehab. DVD set, $29.98. (Lionsgate)

DRILLBIT TAYLOR

(2008, 109 min.)

Dir.: Steven Brill

When school bullies knock you around, who you gonna call? Owen Wilson. A rare clunker from the Judd Apatow comedy factory ("Knocked Up," "Superbad," "The 40-Year-Old Virgin"), the movie stars Wilson as a supposed ex-mercenary hired by some high school nerds as their personal bodyguard. The movie comes in an extended version on DVD and Blu-ray that adds footage and includes deleted scenes, a variety of behind-the-scenes featurettes and commentary with director Steve Brill, his screenwriter and his teen stars. The original theatrical release also is available in a separate DVD, with commentary and deleted scenes. DVD, $29.99; Blu-ray, $39.99. (Paramount)

MY BLUEBERRY NIGHTS

(2007, 111 min.)

Dir.: Wong Kar Wai

Norah Jones makes her acting debut and Wong Kar Wai does his first English-language film with this tale of a brokenhearted lover on a meandering cross-country foray. Singer Jones takes the lead in Wong's dreamy tale of a woman in the aftermath of a romance that ended badly, first seen spilling her guts to the New York cafe owner (Jude Law) who feeds her blueberry pie, then waitressing down South and watching the painful marital breakup between a cop (David Strathairn) and his bimbo wife (Rachel Weisz), finally hanging with a gambler (Natalie Portman) in Nevada. The DVD has a question-and-answer session with Wong, deleted scenes and a making-of segment. DVD, $19.97. (Genius)