Ted Leo and the Pharmacists: The Brutalist Bricks

Label: Matador

The very name Ted Leo is legend here in New York City, based as much on his brilliant outdoor jacked-generator performance during the big blackout of 2003 as on his countless high-octane live gigs in regular old clubs. The Brutalist Bricks, his first album for Matador and sixth overall, alters little of Leo’s genius-punk-poet M.O.: 13 tracks of impeccably sharp, politically righteous pop nuggets that hit like rocket-shards of truth — Billy Bragg reborn as a young Elvis Costello, with all the savage wit and romantic heart of both. Those aren’t lazy comparisons either — just listen to “Even Heroes Have to Die” or “Last Days” or “Bottled Up in Cork” (to name three tunes you could enjoy with your parents, to the embarrassment of none) and you’ll realize that Leo is building a canon that will one day stand with the above veterans. (Vinyl includes digital download.) (M.L. Thrope)