Bloglander

Every week we dive into the new releases in music and home video to help you decide how to spend your hard-earned dollars, and offer up samples for you along the way. It's Tuesday Taste. Let's do it: 

MUSIC

FAITH NO MORE, Sol Invictus. The aggro-rock crew is back with its first album since 1997, and it's like they haven't missed a step. Mike Patton is one of the best vocalists in the biz, whether crooning something sweet or screaming like he's going to pop a lung, and the band remains furiously diverse in its tastes. They headline at Bumbershoot this year, so you have plenty of time to get reacquainted and dig the new stuff, like this live version of "Superhero" from a recent record store appearance: 

THEE OH SEES, Mutilator Defeated At Last. This crew, originally from San Francisco, defies easy labels, delving into folk, pop, garage-rock and psychedelia at various points in their tunes. Now relocated to LA, the music on their latest is some of their best. Here's a sample, a song called "Web": 

BRANDON FLOWERS, The Desired Effect. The lead singer of The Killers is proving to be remarkably prolific. Besides his band's relatively steady output over the past decade, he finds time to put out bombastic pop albums on his own, like this one — a definite improvement over his first solo album. Here's a new song called "Lonely Town:"

MOVIES & TV

The biggest home video release this week is obviously American Sniper, judging purely on box-office success and the size Bradley Cooper grew to for the part. And surely some of the goodwill stirred by the original will cause some of you to rent Hot Tub Time Machine 2. I'll admit to having seen it — don't bother. 

Arguably the best rental/buy on vid for the week is season 2 of Orange is the New Black, the excellent Netflix series. If you somehow don't have Netflix and haven't caught up with the prison-set ... dramatic comedy? Comedic drama? The second season isn't as strong as the first, but it pushes the story along nicely while giving viewers more background stories of the prisoners. Here's a look: