New From Mariah Carey, Leona Lewis, Trina and Asia

MARIAH CAREY “EMC2″ (Island/Def Jam) 3 stars

After bizarre meltdowns and questionable career choices early in this decade, Mariah Carey came back with a bang in 2005 with her album “The Emancipation of Mimi,” which gave us the hits “Shake It Off,”"Don’t Forget About Us” and “We Belong Together.” Now, the songbird proves her comeback was no fluke with “EMC2.”

Carey has toned down her five-octave range a bit, but purists need not worry _ her voice has lost none of its power.

The album starts off poorly, with the monotone “Migrate” offering wannabe hip-hop lines such as “From the car into the club we migrate/From the bar to VIP we migrate/From the party to the afterparty migrate/After-party to hotel _ migrate” and a stunted, hesitant rap by T-Pain. But the first single, the slinky slow jam “Touch My Body,” unleashes Mariah’s inner vamp. It’s a shameless sex anthem, with talk of Mariah wrapping her legs around a guy’s waist and begging for him to “give me what I deserve,” but somehow, her angelic voice makes it all sound almost innocent.

On “Cruise Control,” Mariah teams up with new-school reggae royalty Damian Marley, who contributes a short but rhythmic rap. The song is more than a bit silly _ it spells out C-R-U-I-S-E control, for some reason, and Mariah tries to pull off a Jamaican accent (“He’s the flyest ting”) _ but it’s pleasing and flows nicely. “I’m That Chick” cops the slick, cool funk of “Forget Me Nots” _ its cleverly minimalist bass line somehow uses exactly one note, but perfectly anchors the groove. The appealing ballad “Last Kiss” serves up Mariah’s trademark hopeful romance: “This feeling is too good to miss/Ain’t no kiss ever gonna be our last kiss,” while “Love Story” aims for the anthemic heft of “We Belong Together” and doesn’t miss by much.

But the album’s high point finds Mariah softly and sweetly lamenting the loss of any kind of loved one on the truly touching “Bye Bye”: “This is for my peoples who just lost somebody/Your best friend, your baby, your man or your lady/Put your hand way up high/We will never say bye.” Thankfully, it looks like we won’t be saying “bye” to Mariah for a long time.

Pod Picks: “Touch My Body,”"Last Kiss,”"Bye Bye.”

_Michael Hamersly

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LEONA LEWIS “Spirit” (J/Syco Music) 1 star

If you’ve been living in a cave, consider yourself lucky _ you’ll have avoided the relentless hucksterism shilling this British export.

Leona Lewis won Britain’s “X-Factor” in 2006, an “American Idol”-equivalent talent show. Label head Clive Davis and “Idol’s” Simon Cowell proved to be so smitten with the lovely lass they are spending beaucoup bucks to ensure that Lewis, a 23-year-old beauty with vocal range and the ability to emulate Mariah Carey and Celine Dion (but not equal them), becomes “the next Mariah.”

Not surprisingly, Oprah Winfrey fell for the swindle. After Lewis sang on her program, her “Bleeding Love” single went to No. 1.

Commercially, Lewis can’t miss. Her music, a preponderance of maudlin ballads and lite-urban thumpers like the Akon-produced standout, “Forgive Me,” is so cynically tailored for mainstream radio you wonder if a computer created the tunes. Her vocals won’t alleviate this concern. Lewis can sing _ in a technical sense, but her voice has absolutely no soul, no personality. At this stage, she’s merely a creation of a brilliant marketing machine. She “might” become a true artist one day if she’s allowed to reveal her own individual style. She’ll also need music that doesn’t ring as hollow, boring and crass as she’s been saddled with here.

Pod Pick: “Forgive Me.”

_Howard Cohen

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TRINA “Still Da Baddest” (Slip-N-Slide) 2 stars

Miami rapper Trina may indeed still be “da baddest b—-,” but those who are looking for a bit of depth in their hip-hop might want to steer clear of her. “Still Da Baddest” is filled with one-note empty bragging and gratuitous lewdness that sounded fresh the first time she did it _ in 2000.

On the title track, Trina declares “the b—- is back” and warns “Y’all gon’ learn to respect the queen.” On “Killing You Hoes,” Trina again reminds us that she’s da baddest b—-, before threatening to act out the song’s title.

Much more appealing is the empowering first single, “Single Again,” which flirts with techno as the Diamond Princess exclaims proudly: “I’m single again, back on the prowl/I thought he was perfect/I don’t know how.” Trina pulls a total 180 on the astonishingly profane “Look Back At Me,” which would be amusing if not for the gimmicky low vocals that sound like they’re playing at half-speed. Keyshia Cole helps out on the melodic “I Got a Thang For You,” which along with the surprisingly sweet “Wish I Never Met You” shows Trina does have a soft side.

Missy Elliott’s name on “I Got a Bottle” is promising, but the song is a chaotic mess, dragged down by more half-speed vocals. “Stop Traffic” finds Pitbull obsessing over Trina’s backside, while “Phone Sexx” is about as dull as a song with that title could be.

“Still Da Baddest” has a few nice moments, but you’d think in the three years since her last studio album, Trina could come up with something more original.

Pod Picks: “Single Again,”"I Got a Thang For You.”

_Michael Hamersly

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ASIA “Phoenix” (Frontiers/EMI) 3 stars

“Phoenix” is Asia’s first album since 1983′s “Alpha” to feature the four original members who formed a supergroup from the parts of Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, King Crimson and The Buggles in MTV’s early years. Publicists, and the band, would prefer you forget that Asia, with a revolving roster, soldiered on with a series of forgettable albums. “If you liked it then, you’ll love it now,” singer John Wetton says of his revitalized group and its new studio CD, “Phoenix.” Sure enough, if Asia’s 1982 Top 5 hit “Heat of the Moment” had you cranking your cassette player as a teen, you’ll grow giddy with a nostalgic buzz when “Phoenix’s” anti-war “Never Again” explodes out of your iPod today. “Never Again” is a musical clone of “Heat,” Asia’s greatest single moment, right down to the opening guitar chords.

One wishes that the rest of “Phoenix” strived for more anthemic rock like “Never Again.” Instead, “Phoenix” turns out one ballad after another, plus two lengthy art rock pieces. The good news is that only “Heroine” is truly banal. Everything else sports the strongest set of melodies Asia has committed to disc yet.

Pod Picks: “Never Again,”"Alibis,”"An Extraordinary Life.”

_Howard Cohen

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(c) 2008, The Miami Herald.

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