What the heck happened here? On 2004’s How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, U2 went back to doing what they do best – being a guitar-based rock band thumping around Bono’s larger-than-life vocals. Remember, the album started with drummer Larry Mullens counting off “Vertigo”, then we hear Bono tell the engineer to “turn it up Captain.” Here, on their latest No Line on the Horizon (Interscope), if Bono were to say anything he might offer a “meow.”

Here the band reverts, in most cases, to keyboard-based insipid, bland drivel. Hey, they’ve never been accused of being innovators, and to make matters worse, they sound like they’re now starting to copy themselves.

See, they signed a $100 million deal with Live Nation who now controls the band’s merchandising, website and other materials. While I understand that a band can put a lot of pressure on themselves with a deal like this, it should never, ever interfere with their artistry.

They recorded stuff with Rick Rubin that was shelved and it was rumored that the band was working with will.i.am. It would have been interesting to hear what that material sounded like.

It’s not that the band has to make up-tempo music to be viable, it’s more that they simply seem better suited for it. That being said, the best thing here is current single “Get on Your Boots” and “Stand Up Comedy.” Otherwise U2’s No Line on the Horizon is pretty unemotional and almost purposely bland.

North Mississippi Allstars really did themselves right with last year’s Hernando album. It was nothing that the band hadn’t done in the past. It was still good old Mississippi three-chord, powered blues, but it was gobbled up by a public that was starved for real musicians playing real instruments.

With seven albums under their belt, their eighth is the ambitious retrospective Do It Like We Used To (Songs of the South). Here are two CDs, one covering the years 1996-2004 and the second chronicling 2005 through last year. They are nothing more than NMA’s excellent blues-fueled rock.

Still with Chris Chew on bass and brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson on guitar and drums respectively, the set shows that the band started with a wallop and hasn’t looked back.

Luther Dickinson continues to be the most underrated and under-appreciated slide guitarist playing today. The guy can be as tight as a drum, but can also be a real nasty, dirty guitar player when needed, and with this type of regionalized Mississippi country-blues – in a live setting – most times the nastier the better.

Everything here is great American blues and worthy of being played loud. As a bonus, the band has included a DVD which contains a documentary of the band. North Mississippi Allstars’ Do It Like We Used To is a must.

Lily Allen reminds me of the kind of vocalist that is taking full advantage of her 15 minutes of fame. It’s almost like she knows she’s 13.5 in and has 1.5 left.

Her second album is It’s Not Me, It’s You (Capitol). It continues where her MySpace page leaves off, filled with songs that are about everything and anything that pops in and out of her head. Which is as honest as an artist can be, but her stuff borders on being cheesy.

Allen’s a so-so vocalist and not a musician; she’s really not anything more than the flavor of the month. I really hate sounding so negative, but there isn’t anything here or on her debut album that could change my mind.

Matt Ward is a Portland guy who goes by M. Ward and his seventh album is Hold Time (Merge). An acoustic player who was mesmerized by The Beatles as a kid, Ward’s music is folksy but at times Buddy Holly reminiscent.

Besides his own stuff, he’s been busy being a member of the duo She & Him with Zooey Deschenel, as well as producing Rilo Kiley, member Jenny Lewis’ first solo album. Here though he’s back with his own stuff. It isn’t for everybody, but there’s always a place for smart, tight acoustic-based pop.

The two covers here of Buddy Holly’s “Rave On” and Don Gibson’s classic “Oh Lonesome Me,” which are prime examples of Ward’s approach to music as he tries to reinvent the songs by turning the arrangements inside out. That’s the best way to describe Hold Time.

Other standouts include “Never Had Nobody Like You,” “Epistemology” and “For Beginners.

Matt Ward (Nathaniel Martin)