Generation Y's version of Rush, these New York prog-rockers have used their yowling albums to chronicle the Amory Wars saga, an epic sci-fi fantasia involving a 78-planet solar system called Heaven's Fence and . . . oh, never mind. Storywise, Album Five is as labyrinthine as ever: A deluxe version comes with a 352-page novel co-written by frontman Claudio Sanchez. Musically, though, it's the same old mix of impressive musicianship and arena-size agita. Coheed sometimes write a fetching tune — see the tender ballad "Far" — but Rainbow feels both silly and retrograde.

“Time to Pretend”

Listening to MGMT’s breakthrough song, one might interpret it as being about the excesses of rock stardom, but it’s actually about the duo’s pet praying mantis. Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden told Rolling Stone they got the idea from the insect's jerky movements. The mantis died, but the two bandmates kept the egg sack and allowed the hundreds of eggs to hatch. “We tried to name them all, but they died after a day,” said Goldwasser, with VanWyngarden chiming in, “But the praying mantis dance inspired us.”