New Albums

* Kim Richey, “Rise,” Lost Highway. The singer-songwriter is usually classified as a country artist, but her work has been moving in a more general pop direction. Produced by Bill Bottrell, her fourth album employs wheezy, new-wave keyboards along with banjos and acoustic guitars. More to the point, different songs evoke such emotionally insightful artists as Aimee Mann and Tom Petty. Despite Richey’s widely varied tunes--including the muted, bluesy “Girl in a Car,” the torchy Latin-flavored “Without You” and the Band-esque “Cowards in a Brave New World”--the collection’s restrained production creates a unifying sense of solitary reflection. Her assessments feel more like portraits painted from memory than like snapshots of moments.

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Also:

Johnny Dowd, “The Pawnbroker’s Wife,” Catamount Records

Govt. Mule, “The Deep End, Volume 2,” ATO Records

Rilo Kiley, “Execution of All Things,” Saddle Creek

Mark Knopfler, “The Ragpicker’s Dream,” Warner Bros.

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, “Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Vol. III,” Capitol

LeAnn Rimes, “Twisted Angel,” Curb Records

The Rolling Stones, “Forty Licks,” Virgin

Thievery Corporation, “The Richest Man in Babylon,” ESL

Jenny Toomey, “Tempting,” Misra

Various Artists, “American Idol: Greatest Moments,” RCA

Xzibit, “Man vs. Machine,” Columbia