"ALL THAT I AM" BY SANTANA; ARISTA

Once a distinctive Latin rock band given to manic percussive workouts and feverish guitar orbits, Santana continues to dilute its mojo with a hit parade of guests and generic radio-aimed tunes.

Carlos and the boys are mere sidemen on Steven Tyler's bombastic "Just Feel Better," Michelle Branch's bland "I'm Feeling You" and Bo Bice's pale "Brown Skin Girl." The band does step to the fore in the old-school sizzle of "Hermes" and the guitar-scorched "I Am Somebody," but the identity-rotating "All That I Am" never really reveals all that Santana can be.

— Edna Gundersen, USA Today

"PLAYING THE ANGEL" DEPECHE MODE; SIRE/REPRISE/MUTE

Apparently, Depeche Mode wasn't enjoying the silence.

As they close in on 25 years together, the synth-rock pioneers — Dave Gahan, Martin Gore and Andy Fletcher — have once again conquered their demons, overcoming personal tragedies and side projects to release "Playing the Angel," their 11th studio album and first since 2001's "Exciter."

All the old Depeche Mode themes — disillusionment, hope, sin, loss of faith, redemption — are revisited, and yet they feel fresh, perhaps because their wounds still must be. More likely, though, it's because they chose a cutting-edge producer — Ben Hillier (Blur, Doves) — who provided a shot of objectivity, as he wasn't a fan of the group.

The album kicks off with "A Pain That I'm Used To," a bold statement that immediately commands attention with its alarmingly distorted guitar riff and driving bass line. Gahan's deep voice, strong and comforting amid the cacophony, hasn't lost its arena-filling resonance. That power drives certain future crowd-pleasers that also embrace the past, such as "John the Revelator," which taps the bluesy religious sarcasm of "Personal Jesus"; "Suffer Well," whose chord changes are straight from "Behind the Wheel"; and "Nothing's Impossible, which captures the dark reverberation of "Little 15."

Despite "Playing the Angel's" sweeping, sinister overtones, the music doesn't always sound ominous.

— Michael Hamersly, Knight Ridder News Service