In Brief

* * * Jawbox, “For Your Own Special Sweetheart,” Atlantic. On its major-label debut, this Washington D.C.-based punk band continues to do what it does best: churn out frantic, tension-filled guitar rock. The most obvious comparison would be to fellow D.C. punks Fugazi, but Jawbox’s fury is more melodic--so much so that the guitars on such songs as “Savory” almost shimmer when they’re not cranking out distorted bursts of noise.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). A rating of five stars (a classic) is reserved for retrospective albums.