Sweet as honey, yet packing a sting, The Beekeeper (Epic) by Tori Amos is an album that marks a return as much as it suggests a departure. “Sleeps With Butterflies” and “General Joy” echo the Tori of Little Earthquakes, a sound that for many reminds them of what it was that made them admire Amos in the first place; uncluttered arrangements, with Amos’ voice and Bösendorfer piano out front. These are the kinds of originals one might imagine Amos slipping into her set when she played piano and sang in Washington, D.C., gay bar Mr. Henry’s very early in her career. Equally remarkable are songs such as “Sweet The Sting,” “Witness” and “Hoochie Woman,” in which Amos embraces her inner ‘70s soul diva, aided by a Hammond B3 organ and the London Community Gospel Choir. Amos also lets her Irish show with “The Power of Orange Knickers” and “Ireland.” She is joined by Irish singer/songwriter Damien Rice on duet vocals.

Devotees and newcomers alike owe it to themselves to flip through Amos’ just published book Piece By Piece (Broadway Books, 2005), a collaboration with Ann Powers, in which the occasionally obscure Amos unlocks the mysteries of songs, new and old. Tori Amos will be at the Royce Hall Auditorium in Los Angeles on April 25.

Five or more years between albums is a long time, heck it’s an eternity, but that’s approximately how long it’s been since we last heard from Shivaree. Fronted by singular lead singer Ambrosia Parsley, Shivaree made an impression in the late ‘90s with the haunting and ethereal Goodnight Moon, and then seemed to disappear. The band’s next album never received a domestic release, but all that has changed with Who’s Got Trouble? (Zöe). Opening track “New Casablanca,” from which the album’s title is derived, is a slow drifting number that makes way for the spooky “I Close My Eyes,” the swampy stomp of “Someday” and “Little Black Mess,” which recalls Los Lobos at their most experimental. The disc’s troubling centerpiece, “Mexican Boyfriend,” in which Parsley reminisces about the death of a childhood crush, is simply stunning. Shivaree does Brian Eno proud with its cover of “The Fat Lady of Limbourg,” and delivers on the promise of “I Will Go Quietly.”

In The Clear (Nettwerk America) by Ivy also marks a return. After 2002’s wonderful album of cover tunes, Ivy’s Adam Schlesinger’s pop chart success with Fountains Of Wayne, In The Clear, is a collection of catchy tunes that grew on me with each listen. “Thinking About You,” with Dominque Durand’s distinctive vocals driving the song forward, is a thoughtful pop ditty. “Keep Moving,” a suggestion as much as a song, flirts with a subtle electro beat and “Four In The Morning” musically conjures that hour. “Corners of Your Mind” appropriately echoes “Thinking About You,” and “I’ve Got You Memorized” is one of the more unforgettable tracks on the album. Ivy performs at The Casbah in San Diego on May 9.

After happily listening repeatedly to “It’s A Hit,” in which lead singer Rilo Kiley and actress Jenny Lewis sing about how “any chimp can play human for a day” and how “any asshole can open up a museum,” I thought it best to explore the rest of the album, More Adventurous (Brute/Beaute). Whether she’s offering advice to a friend stuck in a loveless marriage (“Does He Love You?”), conjuring Neko Case on the countrified “I Never,” transforming illness into a pop song on “Accidntel Deth,” singing about the “slow fade of love,” and meeting up with an ex at the funeral of a friend who committed suicide on “A Man/Me/Then Jim,” Lewis kept me rapt and made me look forward to more adventures with Rilo Kiley.

The primary focus of Lismore is shared by vocalist Penelope Trappes and electronics wiz Stephen Hindman. Toss in a bass player (Claude Coleman) and a drummer (Peter Kaufmann) and you have an attention getting combination of the electronic and the organic on the band’s album We Could Connect or We Could Not (Cult Hero). Songs that connected best included “This Time,” “Tonight,” “Blood Bank” and “Tremolo.”

When Amanda Palmer, of punk cabaret duo The Dresden Dolls, wails “I’m on fire” in “Good Day,” the opening track of their self-titled 8 Ft. Records debut, you can practically smell something burning. By “Girl Anachronism,” where she admits to not being “the carefullest of girls,” Palmer and Brian Viglione prove that they have a grasp on the fragile punk cabaret balancing act. Also of note are “Half Jack,” “Coin-Operated Boy,” “Bad Habit” and “The Jeep Song.” Dresden Dolls perform at Soma in San Diego on May 30 and 31.