In ‘Strange Love,’ T.S.O.L. Blends Grit, Versatility : Recordings from fellow O.C.-based performers--country singer Jann Browne and synth-pop Anything Box--offer plenty of variety.

Performers from the Orange County pop scene continue to churn out recordings at a furious pace, making 1990 an exceptional year for quantity, quality and stylistic breadth. Those reviewed below are rated on a scale from * (poor) to ***** (a classic).

***

T.S.O.L.

“Strange Love” (Enigma)

With the recent departure of founding bassist Mike Roche, T.S.O.L. lost the last strand connecting the band to its origins a decade ago as a Huntington Beach punk group. Musically, though, that connection had ended with the 1987 album, “Hit and Run,” which veered away from punk and deeply into heavy metal. A sell-out? Die-hard punkers may say so. But if “Strange Love” is an obvious bid for mass-appeal commercial success, it is a bid made with honor intact.

At its worst, heavy metal offers escapist fantasies of power, rebellion and easy, emotion-free sex. The strong point of “Strange Love” is the way in which it baits pop-metal hooks as enticing as Def Leppard’s or Bon Jovi’s, while still maintaining sonic grit and impact and a fatalistic outlook that is by no means escapist. The protagonists of T.S.O.L.’s songs aren’t sexual studs and hard-rockin’ heroes, but, in most cases, victims trying to shake off emotional blows--if they haven’t already been brought down by something more final, like a policeman’s bullet or a drug overdose. In that respect, T.S.O.L. still has a streak of punk-rock realism running through its work.

The songs, though, are painted on metal’s epic canvas. That leads to broad statements and big gestures that don’t allow much room for lyrical subtlety--and singer Joe Wood won’t ever be mistaken for a crafty wordsmith. But if the idea on a number of songs is no more complex than life-is-tough-and-you’ve-got-to-have-guts-to-survive, at least that’s a point worth making.

The best songs are “Let Me Go,” a ballad that recasts the old “Streets of Laredo” cowboy death-rattle scenario, and “Candy,” where T.S.O.L. gets low-down and bluesy in a humorous tale about a drug moll on the lam who always seems to get the drop on the song’s luckless pursuer.

Versatility is one of the album’s assets, as T.S.O.L. ranges from the raunchy blues of “Candy” to the impressive head-banging momentum of “Blow by Blow,” to the sorrowful grandeur of “Angel” and the stormy, elegiac sweep of “In the Wind.” Wood’s singing remains as raw and grainy as ever, but his voice has more range and flexibility than in the past. Lead guitarist Marshall Rohner’s performance is for the most part a model of conciseness, high impact and disdain for the noisy, note-spattering excess of metal-guitar convention (Rohner, like Roche, is no longer in the band, which now has bassist Dave Mello and guitarist Scott Phillips playing alongside Wood and drummer Mitch Dean).

T.S.O.L.’s punk past may be gone, but “Strange Love” is a strong bid from a band whose realism and no-frills gumption stand as a healthy example in its new field.

** 1/2

JANN BROWNE

“Tell Me Why” (Curb)

This Orange County veteran’s first album offers almost everything you could ask from a country music new traditionalist. The only thing missing is what the neo-traditionalist movement needs most if it is to keep (by now, regain might be a more appropriate verb) its vigor: a willingness to break from tradition with bold, imaginative sallies.

Browne’s album showcases a voice full of classic sweetness and assured, throaty twang (from the sound of it, Emmylou Harris is a big influence). She can ache on a lovelorn ballad, or rock a little when the action moves to the honky tonk. And if you can judge a performer by the company she keeps, Browne comes with the seal of approval. Harris harmonizes on the south-of-the-border lament, “Mexican Wind,” New Grass Revival provides the backup on the plaintive bluegrass tune, “Lovebird,” and elsewhere Browne’s ace picking staff includes such players as Albert Lee, Byron Berline and the Desert Rose Band’s John Jorgenson and Bill Bryson.

It all adds up to an album full of impeccable performances. But, putting aside the simple appeal of good singin’ and good playin,’ all that impeccable talent is serving songs that too often fall into familiar ruts. Numbers like “Louisville” (one of three tunes that Browne co-wrote) and “Losing You” do little to make country’s oldest subject--heartbreak--sound fresh again. “Louisville” starts with a good premise--woman travels to a rendezvous point in the middle of the country and waits six weeks, only to be jilted by her lover--but Browne fails to build the song emotionally. It canters along as a simple, bittersweet lament when the situation cries out for an angry outburst. Most of the songs suffer from this one-note emotional tone, as Browne fails to explore the complexities of feeling that romantic crises surely bring.

Browne does show some welcome sass on “You Ain’t Down Home,” by the O’Kanes’ Jamie O’Hara. The cool, contemptuous edge in her voice as she laces into a trendy materialist devoted to gold cards, Jacuzzis and high-tech telephones is sharp enough to cow Donald Trump himself. The other highlight is “Lovebird,” a sweet, sad bluegrass ballad that works on sheer loveliness.

“Tell Me Why” shows that Browne has major league ability. Next time out, she needs to set herself apart from the crowd of country performers who offer lots of ability, but not enough individuality and imagination.

**

ANYTHING BOX

“Peace” (Epic)

Originally from New Jersey, this synth-pop trio moved to La Habra last year to work under producer Jon St. James. Its debut album follows the basic pattern of such British techno-pop success stories as Depeche Mode, but with one atypical wrinkle: Instead of offering dark, brooding, ironic commentaries about how futile and corrupt the world is, Anything Box offers sweetly melancholy meditations on the sad state of life and love.

Melody is the group’s strong suit. “Living in Oblivion” and “Kiss of Love” feature insinuating refrains carried along by singer Claude S.’s fragile tenor. Songs are put together like Lego houses, out of discreet bits of linked melodic material. But the process becomes formulaic after a while: mechanical beats overlaid with soft keyboard gauze and a puff of vocal melody. The moods and methods repeat from song to song. Reinforcing this sameness is a reliance on repetition within individual songs, most of which go on too long without development or progression.

Claude tends to drift in hazy reverie, mourning romantic disappointments and worldly conflicts while holding fast to his ideals. Occasionally he tries to switch from choirboy sweetness to a huskier lower range. But when he does, his voice isn’t full-bodied enough to sound anything but forced. Instead of adding body and contrast to the sound, backing singer Dania Morales mirrors Claude’s fragility.

Anything Box succeeds best on songs that hint at a story line and a conflict. “Our Dreams” works nicely by setting Claude’s plaintive vocal against an ominous beat--a combination that follows the lyric’s juxtaposition of innocent hopes against crushing realities. “Carmen” is another tale about an innocent wronged, and “Just One Day” at least gives some direction to Claude’s romantic mooning, tracing his emotional state as it evolves over the course of a day.

When the songs take a coherent shape, Anything Box holds some weight. Mostly, the music floats away on a pretty but diffuse cloud of melancholy.

HIGHER GROUND: Fullerton dance-pop singer Stacey Q has been studying Buddhism in Nepal for the past few months, raising questions about future career moves and, more immediately, about her safety in a Himalayan country racked recently by political turmoil. Earlier this month, a massive pro-democracy demonstration in the capital of Katmandu met with a violent government response before the nation’s king relented and agreed to implement reforms.

“We’ve been really worried, but her mother said she called and said, ‘Don’t worry, everything’s OK,’ ” Stacey Q’s manager, Jon St. James, said Tuesday. “She was supposed to start a month ago on a new record for Atlantic. A week ago we got (a card): “Coming back in two weeks.”

St. James says he isn’t sure whether the singer (whose real name is Stacey Swain) is going to want to return to the lightly romantic mold of her three previous albums.

“I don’t know what to expect,” he said. “I don’t think she’s going to be in a frame of mind to work on a dance record.”

NEW LEATHER CHAPS: Leatherwolf, the Fountain Valley-based heavy metal band that recorded two albums for Island Records, has gone through some career reshuffling, personnel switches, and stylistic revamping over the past few months. Singer Mike Olivieri said Tuesday that he and guitarists Geoff Gayer and Carey Howe remain together from the original lineup, but the bass and drums team of Pat Guyton and Marco Forcone is new. Olivieri said that the band lost its recording deal after Island was bought out by PolyGram Records--a move he said Leatherwolf took willingly, since the band felt Island hadn’t given its releases enough of a promotional push.

Now Leatherwolf is seeking a new record deal, with a new musical direction after two albums of gothic heavy metal full of complex guitar harmonies: “It’s way more straight rock ‘n’ roll,” Olivieri said. “I hate to jump on the Guns N’ Roses bandwagon, but it’s more in that vein.”

Leatherwolf also is contemplating a name change, but the band hasn’t thought up anything permanent yet. When it plays Saturday night at the Marquee in Westminster, it will be billed as Wasted Flesh, a joke name that Olivieri said the members thought up just for the occasion.

FIDDLE ABOUT: Oklahoma-born bluegrass veterans Byron Berline and Alan Munde will team up for duo performances Saturday night at 7 and 9:30 at the Shade Tree in Laguna Niguel. Fiddler Berline, has performed with the Dillards, the Flying Burrito Brothers and his own band, Sundance, as well as playing on myriad sessions for the likes of Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones. Banjo player Munde first teamed with Berline in the Country Gazette in 1972. The show is the first in a spring series at the Shade Tree. On May 5, Tuxedo Cowboy, a local group with an unusual country-classical blend, will share the bill with pop songwriter George Lawton. Redmond O’Colonies sings humorous songs in the British music hall style on May 18. Highly regarded mandolin player Evan Marshall headlines June 2, with lute player David Rastall opening, and classical guitarist Gregory Coleman performs on June 16. Information: (714) 364-5270.

ROCKERS WITH A CAUSE: Two benefits for the homeless are on tap: On Saturday, Bill Medley and friends perform at the Hop in Fountain Valley in a show that will benefit the Orange Coast Interfaith Center’s efforts to aid the homeless. The minimum donation for the 7 p.m. show is $25. Information: (714) 963-2366. Cactus Jack recording studio is sponsoring a benefit for the Homeless Rehabilitation Centers of America, a Long Beach agency, April 30 at Bogart’s in Long Beach. Performers on the 8 p.m. bill are Ann De Jarnett and Jim Bemis, the Charms, the Diamond Studs, the Pivot Foots, Spanish Fly, Sublime, Wood & Smoke and the Cactus Jack All Stars. Admission is $5 plus two canned items. Information: (714) 594-8975.

Disabled war veterans will be the beneficiaries of a charity show featuring singers Kenny Rankin and Bianca and magician Mitch Williams on May 2 at Hamptons. Proceeds will go toward building a retreat and rehabilitation center in Utah for the veterans. Tickets to the show cost $37.50 to $50. Information: (714) 979-5511.