It's a motley crew releasing new albums this week, with Melissa Auf Der Maur dropping her first solo project, Truth Hurts and the Baha Men seeking a return to the spotlight, and an electronic band getting dreamy.

Melissa Auf Der Maur, former Hole and Smashing Pumpkins bassist, tries her hand at a solo career with her debut album, Auf Der Maur. Auf Der Maur has brought along some friends to help out, though, including members and former members of Queens of the Stone Age, Hole, A Perfect Circle, Helmet and the Offspring.

Truthfully Speaking, it's been two years since Dr. Dre protégé Truth Hurts released her last album. Well, she's Ready Now, and releasing her sophomore album this week.

Holla at the Baha Men. The group is letting its dogs out again with a new album, Holla! The Men have released three albums since 2000's immensely successful Who Let the Dogs Out, but none have had a comparable runaway hit.

Like Kraftwerk? Have a fondness for electronic music and synthesizers? Tangerine Dream may be right up your alley. They release Dream Mixes 4 this week.

Flying under the radar this week are albums by Downset (Universal), Melissa Ferrick (The Other Side) and Katey Sagal of "Married With Children" fame (Room).

Out Tuesday, June 1:

• Aa - Big A Little a (Narnack)
• Afterlife - Speck of Gold (Bar de Lune)
• Amp Fiddler - Waltz of a Ghetto Fly (PIAS America/Genuine)
• Animal Collective - Sung Tongs (Fatcat)
• Another Dead Juliet - Here Lies (Trash Art!)
• Asura - Lost Eden (TV Matters)
• Auf Der Maur - Auf Der Maur (Capitol)
  Read: "Ex-Hole Bassist Follows Orders From The Aliens In Her Head"
  Buy Now: Auf Der Maur (Capitol)
  
• Backstabbers Incorporated - Kamikaze Missions (Trash Art!)
• Baha Men - Holla (S-Curve)
  Buy Now: Holla (S-Curve)
  
• Blue-Eyed Son - West of Lincoln (Eenie Meenie)
• Gary U.S. Bonds - Back in 20 (M.C.)
• Brydge - Crossover (X-Ray)
• BT - Music From and Inspired by the Film "Monster" (DTS)
• Eugene Cole & Persuaded - Jesus Is the Balm (Jabez/PGE/Brody)
• Cosmic Rough Riders - Too Close to See Far (429/Savoy)
• Crimson Spectre - Crimson Spectre (Magic Bullet)
• Joe Diffie - Tougher Than Nails (BBR/C4)
• Sandy Dillon - Nobody's Sweetheart (One Little Indian)
• Downset - Universal (Hawino/Liquid 8)
• Ronnie Earl - Now My Soul (Stony Plain)
• A Faith Called Chaos - Forgive Nothing (Volcom Entertainment)
• Farewell My Enemy - Casting for Funerals (Rise)
• Fear My Thoughts - The Great Collapse (Lifeforce)
• Melissa Ferrick - The Other Side (Right On)
• Fluke - Puppy (One Little Indian)
• Gift - Sumthin' Amazin' (X-Ray)
• Grandadbob - Waltzes for Weirdoes (MRI/Lax Recordings)
• Mic Harrison - Pallbearer's Shoes (Valley Entertainment)
• He Is Legend - He Is Legend (Tribunal)
• Kevin Hearn and Thin Buckle - Night Light (Hybrid)
• Heart & Soul (Nexus) - Parkes Stewart (Comin' Atcha/PGE/Brody)
• The Honorary Title - Anything Else But the Truth (Dog House)
• Joss - If Not for the Hovering ... (Delmore)
• Ana Laan - Orégano (Liquid 8)
• Lackloves - The Beat and the Time (Rainbow Quartz)
• The Like Young - So Serious (Parasol)
• Misery Signals - Of Malice and the Magnum Heart (Ferret)
• Miss Kittin - I COM (Astralwerks)
• My Revenge! - Less Plot, More Blood (Thorp)
• Greg Osby - Public (Blue Note/Metro Blue)
• Jesse Powell - Jesse (Liquid 8)
• The Power & the Glory - Call Me Armageddon (Deathwish Inc.)
• Duke Robillard - Blue Mood (Stony Plain)
• Dexter Romweber - Blues That Defy My Soul (Yep Roc)
• Bobby Rush - Folkfunk (Deep Rush)
• Katey Sagal - Room (Valley Entertainment)
• Saigon - Warning Shots (Sure Shot)
• Bobby Sanabria - Quarteto Ache (Zoho)
• Seldom Seen - See Me Now (East Side)
• W.C. Spencer - Blues Explorer (Catscan)
• Steep Canyon Rangers - Steep Canyon Rangers (Rebel)
• Tangerine Dream - Dream Mixes 4 (TDI Music)
• Therion - Lemuria/Sirius B (Nuclear Blast)
• DJ Tiesto Just Be (Nettwerk)
• Truth Hurts - Ready Now (Pookie Entertainment)
  Buy Now: Ready Now (Pookie Entertainment)
  
• Twelve Tribes - The Rebirth of Tragedy (Ferret)
• Two Lone Swordsmen - From the Double Gone Chapel (Warp)
• Tyshena - Take as Is (X-Ray)
• White Lights -Gifts From Strangers (Two Sheds)
• Zug Izland - 3:33 (Ax & Smash)
• Various artists - Homeward Sound: A Bluegrass Tribute to Simon & Garfunkel (CMH)
• Various artists - Cypress Thrill (X-Ray)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to Enya: Dreams (Vitamin)
• Various artists - Evil Lives: A True Metal Tribute to Black Sabbath (Magick)
• Various artists - Guitar Tribute to Bob Seger (Tribute Sounds)
• Various artists - Outbreak Presents: Biological Warfare (MRI/Outbreak)
• Various artists - Record of Shadows Infinite (Crucial Blast)
• Various artists - Soho Lounge (Organica/tpz)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to Duran Duran (Vitamin)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to Guns N' Roses (Vitamin)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to Jet (Vitamin)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to A Perfect Circle (Vitamin)
• Various artists - A Tribute to Blink-182 (Tributized)
• Various artists - A Tribute to Jet (Tributized)
• Various artists - A Tribute to Sevendust (Tributized)
• Various artists - A Tribute to the Strokes (Tributized)
• Various artists - Tribute to Brooks & Dunn (Tribute Sounds)
• Various artists - Tribute to Snoop Dogg (Tribute Sounds)
• Various artists - A Tribute to Josh Turner (Big Eye)
• Various artists - A Tribute to Norah Jones (Big Eye)
• Various artists - A Tribute to Twista (Big Eye)
• DVD: "Lyricist Lounge: Dirty States of America" (Image Entertainment)
• DVD: Corn on Macabre - "The Final Chapter" (Magic Bullet)
• DVD: John Kay and Friends - "Live at the Renaissance Center" (Rainman)

June 8:

• The Calling - Two (RCA)
  Read: "The Calling Returning With New LP, New Hired Hands"
• Corrs - Borrowed Heaven (Atlantic)
• Gene Simmons - A--hole (Sanctuary)
• Velvet Revolver - Contraband (RCA)
  Read: "Velvet Revolver Album Preview: GN'R + STP = Uphill Battle"
  Buy Now: Contraband (RCA)
  
• PJ Harvey – Uh Huh Her (Island)
  Read: "PJ Harvey Album Preview: Heartache, Madness Haunt Uh Huh Her"

June 15:

• Beastie Boys - To the 5 Boroughs (Capitol)
  Read: "Beastie Boys Album Preview: Political Bleats And Old-School Beats"
  Buy Now: To the 5 Boroughs (Capitol)
  
• Phish - Undermind (Elektra/Asylum)
  Buy Now: Undermind (Elektra/Asylum)
  

June 22:

• Mobb Deep - Amerikaz Nightmare (Jive)
• Wilco - A Ghost Is Born (Nonesuch)
• Brian Wilson - Gettin' in Over My Head (Rhino)
• Stevie Wonder - A Time 2 Love (Motown)

• Auf Der Maur
• Truth Hurts
• Baha Men
• BT
• Downset

Stephen Perkins behind the drums at the Los Marijuanos show Monday at Hollywood's Club Vynyl
Photo: Josephine Close

HOLLYWOOD, California — With a band called Los Marijuanos you might expect a mellow time, but when members of Cypress Hill, Jane's Addiction, Deftones, Methods of Mayhem and Downset get together and jam, the vibe is anything but laid-back.

The group keeps it burning by jamming through a mix of originals — drawn from the featured artists' various projects — and by munching on covers ranging from Bad Brains to Public Enemy. Although Brownies in New York might seem the most appropriate setting for the group, they've found a home at Tinseltown's Club Vynyl, where they performed only their third gig Monday night.

Los Marijuanos includes Cypress Hill's B-Real, Sen Dog and Bobo; Everlast; Jane's Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins; Deftones guitarist Stephen Carpenter; Methods of Mayhem bassist Marty O'Brien; Downset guitarist Rogelio Lozano; and MCs XL and Mellow Man Ace.

"It's a bunch of cats that like to play together that fortunately all had June and July off," XL said.

Los Marijuanos' gigs are part of a biweekly event called Club Flavor, spearheaded by Bobo to showcase upcoming acts and provide a forum for established artists to get together and rock out.

"It's been a little brainchild of mine for a couple years to have a place that people can come see live music — hip-hop, rock, alternative and different things — and see people from different groups play together," Bobo said. "The first person I called was Stephen Perkins. We go back a little bit, and I asked him if he wanted to jam with me, and it tripped it all from there. A lot of people didn't think it was possible to have all of us on one stage and rehearse and get something together." The door is open for friends of the Marijuanos to stop by and join in, as Fear Factory bass player Christian Olde Wolbers did Monday night.

One of the, um, high ... lights of the hour-plus, smoke-filled show was a drum duel between Perkins and Bobo, ending with Perkins drumming on O'Brien's bass.

"Sometimes when I double up with other drummers it doesn't work as well, but Bobo and I like to do that because we really get along musically," Perkins said.

Although Los Marijuanos are intense when they're lighting up a stage, there are other areas where they tend to slack off, such as rehearsals.

"They came to my house a few weeks ago," Perkins said, "and we rehearsed a few tunes. We were supposed to have a rehearsal two nights ago, but no one showed up." XL, whose group Supreme Kourt opened the first Club Flavor show last month, said performing in Los Marijuanos allows the members to re-create their own material and favorite songs in a whole new format.

"It's an opportunity for us to stretch out our material in a way that's different for us," he said. "You might hear a new Cypress Hill song that sounds nothing like it will on their next album, or an Everlast song, or an old-school joint you haven't heard in a long time." Club Flavor, whose usual night will be Tuesdays, will continue when Cypress Hill hit the road in support of their next album, Bobo said.

"Hopefully it will just be on autopilot and people will just come out 'cause it's the place to be. We won't always be here, but this is our little home."

• Cypress Hill
• Jane's Addiction
• Deftones
• Everlast
• Methods of Mayhem