Fiction Plane Everything Will Never Be OK MCA/Universal This innovative Brit-pop recording is sure to draw much scrutiny because its leader is none other than Sting's son, Joe Sumner. One can tell off the bat, with the intensive groove of the opening track, "Listen To My Babe," that this is not a straightforward album, and neither are Sumner's lyrics. While "Cigarette" should be in an anti-smoking campaign, "Hate" could well be an anthem for disenfranchised teens, and "Solider Machismo" questions war. The titles and words are negative, but that dark British humor pokes through.	The Thorns The Thorns Aware/Columbia/Sony Sometimes the sum of the whole is greater than the parts, and, right now, Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge and Shawn Mullins might break through again with this collaborative project. The music, co-written by all three singer/ songwriters and multi-instrumentalists, is an anomaly in this day and age - like a CSN for the 21st century. The harmonies are stunning, and the album is, for the most part, a sweet, light, offering that could very well be a long-lost folk album from the sixties and seventies.
	Ashley MacIsaac Ashley MacIsaac Decca/Universal Eight years since releasing his first mainstream album, the A&M Records debut, Hi, How Are You Today?, MacIsaac remains one of this country's freshest and innovative talents. Not only is he an exceptional fiddle player, but he's not afraid to incorporate traditional Celtic tunes into a hodge-podge of rock and pop. He also sings on this recording, and on "Lay Me Down," his rough vocal is anything but sappy, and on "Grapes" he busts out even more on this dark pumping track. "Mull Of Kintyre" enlists Default's Dallas Smith. Signed or not signed, this guy is truly independent.	Kinnie Starr Sun Again Violet Inch/MapleMusic Vancouver's Kinnie Starr went through a rough time with the big corporate music industry machine, so the artist-friendly MapleMusic is a perfect spot for her. Sun Again gently unfolds with her rhymthmical poetry to a light soulful groove. As she sings on "Soar," she "speaks words that carry." From "Superclever" to "Rise," she seems to sing/rap about what she's gone through, what she's learned and what she intends to do. Thankfully, it's to make more sound. But first, it's a three-year stint in Vegas singing with a new Cirque du Soleil production.
	Three Days Grace Three Days Grace Jive/BMG "I could be mean/I could be angry/ You know, I could be just like you," vocalist/guitarist Adam Gontier sings on "Just Like You" but it's a song of defiance, as are many of the songs on the rock trio's debut album. And it's a good thing. Orig-inally from Norwood, Ont. (population 1,500), 3DG rebels against conformity and complacence. Moving to Toronto and landing a major U.S. deal is one example. From the first single, "(I Hate) Everything About You," which deals with love-hate relationships verging on co-dependency and abusiveness, the band writes hard, dark rock tunes with break-out choruses.	Radiohead Hail To The Chief Parlophone/EMI As usual, on the British pop innovator's latest album, frontman Thom Yorke often distorts his choir-like capabilities by sneering, warbling, muttering or pure angelic stretches - but he connects to the bone in any form. From the rockier single-type contributions of "2+2=5" and "There There" to the slow, doomy "Sit Down. Stand Up" (only Yorke could make "walk into the jaws of hell" sound inviting) which breaks into repetitive pelting percussion, to the sweeping beauty of "Sail To The Moon", in these elections, we say Hail To Radiohead. No recount needed. -Karen Bliss