PJ Harvey, White Chalk

If I tell you my favorite PJ Harvey record is Rid of Me, you probably peg me for an admirer of Polly Jean, grunge rocker, beating Albini and Cobain at their own game. This is true, but what's equally impressive is that she's a rare pop musician who gets bored easily with one style, so we've heard her do trip-hop, Beefheart blues, straight-up pop. And on last year's new one, she puts the guitar away and takes up the piano and beats Galaxie 500 and Opal and Cat Power at their own game, turning the volume way down, turning the reverb up, keeping the intensity level high. I've never listened to the lyrics but they all sound like they're telling some Brontean ghost story.