Suggested Sounds from Rio to Nashville

Nashville, New Orleans and Rio de Janeiro are among the colorful musical datelines in this edition of the $25 Guide, which outlines how to keep up with the best in pop music on a budget of $25 a month. The albums are also available in compact disc, though the budget for CD fans has to be almost doubled. April

“Brazil Classics 1/Beleza Tropical” (Fly/Sire)--After the intensity and fire of the African and Caribbean sounds embraced in recent years by U.S. pop-rock fans, these Brazilian offerings may seem slight because they sway more than storm. As compiler David Byrne points out, however, there is a subtlety and passion in the music (by Milton Nascimento, Jorge Ben, others) that eventually asserts itself and helps explain why so many musicians (jazz as well pop) have long championed the sound.

Lyle Lovett’s “Lyle Lovett and His Large Band” (MCA/Curb)--The most memorable country music often borders on parody because country songwriters deal with the tragicomic aspects of romantic heartbreak. Lovett, a singer-songwriter blessed with a touch of Randy Newman bite and Tom Waits irony, is a master at it.

Neville Brothers’ “Yellow Moon” (A&M;)--Things work well enough when producer Daniel Lanois (whose credits also include work on Peter Gabriel’s “So” and U2’s “The Joshua Tree”) simply showcases the seductive rhythms and enticing vocals of the Nevilles’ classic Creole blend of New Orleans R&B; and rock. But the socially conscious remakes (including Bob Dylan’s “With God on Our Side” and Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come”) help make this the Nevilles’ most powerful and accomplished collection.

May

Peter Case’s “The Man With the Blue Postmodern Fragmented Neo-Traditionalist Guitar” (Geffen)--An album-of-the-year contender, Case’s second solo work is an exploration of values and relationships that offers the eloquence and heart associated with the finest folk-flavored works of Dylan and John Prine.

The Cure’s “Disintegration” (Elektra)-- Bleak Is Beautiful is a recurring theme in rock, but rarely has the proposition been explored so masterfully. No stranger to dark moods, the Cure adds to the odd, unsettling effect of the lyrics in “Disintegration” by contrasting them with musical textures so rich and lavish that they invites the term gorgeous .

The Pixies’ “Doolitte” (4AD/-Elektra)--Black Francis, the Pixies’ lead singer and songwriter, mixes frequently comforting, if hyperactive arrangements with dark themes in a way that makes him the David Lynch of rock. Already a favorite of the college/alternative circuit, this Boston band is an especially challenging and inviting force.