ALBUM REVIEWS : * The Pogues, “Poguemahone,” Mesa/Blue Moon.

When singer Shane MacGowan fronted the Pogues, the London-based outfit’s mix of traditional Irish music and speedy rock out-rollicked some of the best ‘80s punk. MacGowan’s gruff voice was grittily poetic, his slurred vocals rough-and-tumble, and his lyrics (if you could make them out) were among the best of any rock songwriter’s.

But since MacGowan’s departure five years ago, the Pogues seem a mere ghost of what they once were, and the gaps on their seventh album seem bigger than the ones between their former frontman’s teeth.

Spider Stacy attempts to sing like MacGowan, but sounds uncomfortable in the role of bar-stool romantic. It’s only in ballads, such as “I’ll Love You to the End,” that he relaxes and finds a tone of beautiful melancholy.

The music has also lost much of its bite. Some numbers sound almost new age, thanks to an airy whistle, while others sound like dull FM-rock with a dash of Irish flavor. There are a few wily numbers here that work, but there’s no substitute for the Pogues’ former vitality and recklessness.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).