Amy Ray

“Prom”

3 Stars

Daemon Records

Who said, “Everything you need to know to get through life you learn in high school”? Actually, that was me, but Amy Ray, half of the famous Indigo Girls, reiterates the notion on her second solo album, “Prom.”

Leaving her acoustic guitar in the closet and her folk croon in the coffeehouse, Ray creates rock that lies between the whip-smart lash of R.E.M. and the country sass of Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers.

The music smartly dovetails with the lyrics that fathom hormone howls and rebel yells.

Ancient Ray did herself proud in remembering both the whines and roses of being young.

She does fall off the horse a bit with the song “Rodeo,” and is completely flat for “Pennies on the Track,” but fortunately, the remaining eight tunes range form good to excellent.

Download this: “Driver Education”

Martha Wainwright

“Martha Wainwright”

1 Star

Zoe Records

With her musical pedigree as the daughter of Loudon and sister of Rufus, you’d expect much more from Martha Wainwright on her full-length debut solo offering.

Despite the hipster hype about the power and passion of this singer/songwriter’s music, the record never delivers. In spin after spin, the 13-song collection is mostly a chore to listen to, and when it isn’t, like on the good “When the Day Is Short,” she seems to be singing with voices borrowed from leftover ’70s folkie Marie Muldaur.

At other times, her vocals are as loopy as Cyndi Lauper’s, yet devoid of Lauper’s sense of humor. In fact, there’s little unusual about Wainwright’s voice or songs except a willingness to incorporate the F-word into tunes for shock value.

Download this: “Don’t Waste the Memory”