Add Starsailor to the Roster of Romantics

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STARSAILOR, “Love Is Here”, Capitol

The late Tim Buckley’s poetically ambitious music and lyrics often bespoke an audacity well beyond his years, a mantle picked up by his son Jeff Buckley before his own death in 1997. James Walsh, the young singer-songwriter at the helm of this English band, readily invites comparisons--not only does he evoke both Buckleys in songs on this debut album (due in stores Tuesday), but he also named his band after one of the elder artist’s most audacious albums.

Walsh’s audacity, though, is more of his youth than beyond it. His reach exceeds his grasp as he stretches both his voice and words in his quest to convey Big Emotions. He regularly casts himself as a haven of love and grace in a stormy world. “Stay by my side and the pipe dream is yours now,” he sings to a troubled object of his affection in the song “Alcoholic.”

But his melodies rarely fail to soar, and the band provides dynamic support from rather basic guitar and piano elements, if never achieving the Buckleys’ inventively elliptical jazzy-rock heights. At least Walsh has reach and ambition, placing Starsailor alongside such British new romantics as Coldplay, Doves and Travis.

Much of “Love Is Here” is moving and compelling enough that the youthful sins ought not be merely tolerated, but encouraged. Starsailor plays with the Charlatans UK on Friday at the Palace in Hollywood.

Steve Hochman

In Brief

**1/2 Ruff Ryders, “Ryde or Die Vol. III: In the ‘R’ We Trust,” Ruff Ryders/Interscope. Enlisting outside help proves to be a wise move for the Ruff Ryders. Non-members Petey Pablo and Ludacris deliver the strongest performances on the New York hip-hop collective’s boast-heavy, street-centered third compilation. Ruff Ryders members Eve, Jadakiss and DMX make contributions that are solid but that won’t be mistaken for their better work. The heavy, synthesized sound of the collection leans toward redundancy despite its force.

--Soren Baker

**1/2 Various artists, “I Am Sam” soundtrack, V2. For this movie about a Beatles-loving, mentally challenged man, 17 acts mostly stick close to the blueprints on selections from the Lennon-McCartney songbook. Aimee Mann and Michael Penn (“Two of Us”), Rufus Wainwright (“Across the Universe”), Eddie Vedder (“You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away”), Sheryl Crow (“Mother Nature’s Son”) and Nick Cave (“Let It Be”) lend distinction via their voices alone. Straying from the originals, though, Chocolate Genius (elaborating “Julia”), Paul Westerberg (internalizing “Nowhere Man”) and Grandaddy (an alt-rock “Revolution”) transcend mere reverence.

--S.H.

** The Leaving Trains, “Emotional Legs,” Steel Cage. Falling James--L.A. rock’s most enduringly obscure singing, songwriting transvestite-politician--and company offer a grab bag of originals and offbeat outside material. Things start strong with the pop-punker “Big Baby,” but it’s a bumpy ride from dirge-like Lou Reed-isms to snarky revenge fantasies to misfit love songs. Still, the players skillfully navigate the changes, and James’ way of fusing anger and vulnerability has genuine twisted charm. Catch ‘em at Spaceland in L.A. on Saturday.

--Natalie Nichols

*1/2 Zap Mama, “Push It to the Max,” Luaka Bop. It’s a stretch to call this a Zap Mama album. In fact, it’s an EP set of remixes of tunes--”Nostalgie Amoureuse,” “Bottom,” “Mr. Brown” and “Poetry Man”--from three Zap Mama CDs with a teaser, “Ca Varie Varie,” from an upcoming release. Are the tunes improved by the remixes? Only if you feel Marie Daulne’s evocative works are enhanced by repetitious dance rhythms and irrelevant additional vocals. So, caveat emptor, and save your bucks for the next real Zap Mama album, due sometime this year.

--Don Heckman

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.