New Music Alert: U.K. Edition

So much good music takes too long to make it to our shores. But why delay the gratification? Savor next year’s hits now by springing for these British imports.

Leon Jean Marie, Bent Out of Shape (Island U.K.)
The sharpest thing to come out of London’s East End since Jack the Ripper, this 24-year-old son of Caribbean parents crosses lilting island skank with jaunty Euro funk on his infectious debut, Bent Out of Shape. Featuring production by Mark Ronson (the music hall “Bed of Nails”) and Kylie-collaborator Bloodshy (the Madness-crazy “East End Blues” and “Bring It On”), LJM’s joyful soul is both of-the-minute and oddly timeless.

Sharleen Spiteri, Melody (Universal International)
This veteran of the Scottish band Texas (no, we couldn’t figure out why they were called that either!) releases her first solo effort. Though Spiteri’s tender contralto was always worth a listen, Texas never made an album as consistent as Melody. These 11 post-divorce reflections run the gamut from a Lee Hazelwood country weeper (“I’m Gonna Haunt You”) to an Ann–Margret Vegas-style revue (“Stop, I Don’t Love You Anymore”). The drama’s so thick on Melody, we already hear drag queens practicing in their rooms.

Gabriella Cilmi, Lessons to Be Learned (Island U.K.)
At all of 16 years old, Aussie-bred and London-based Gabriella Cilmi (pronounced “Chill-me”) has the vocal chops of Amy Winehouse. Cilmi’s debut dirties up her old-soul pipes with rock attitude (“Terrifying”) and bluesy grit (“Cigarettes and Lies”). And though she loves retro music, that’s a teenage chip she’s got on her shoulder; she includes a stomper that sums up the adolescent in all of us: “Don’t Want to Go to Bed Now.”