You Stand Watching

Ya gotta give Ryan Cabrera one thing: The guy knows his audience. Ashlee Simpson’s ex-flirt may be 23 years old, but the lyrics on his shaky sophomore record, You Stand Watching, sound like they’ve been lifted from a junior-high yearbook (”I’ll be your shelter when the weather gets rough”). Worse, Cabrera ends virtually each line with a distracting breathy whine, while pop-lite ”With You Gone” contains the pitchiest vocals this side of the American Idol semifinals.

• By Dave Karger