Jonny Greenwood/John Frusciante (2004)

No matter the decade, membership in a big band offers the same perks: fame, groupies, and the chance to record self-indulgent side projects. Take Radiohead guitarist-keyboardist Jonny Greenwood's ''Bodysong,'' a fans-only purchase that meanders from chilly string-quartet segments to free-jazz wailings to irritating tracks that mimic typewriters run amok. Granted, ''Bodysong'' is an indie-film soundtrack, but it still manages to do the unthinkable: make ''Kid A'' sound like an 'N Sync hits package.

Some extracurricular activities can be educational, though. On his fourth outside-group disc, John Frusciante more than lives up to his image as the sweetly spaced-out Red Hot Chili Pepper with a set of squishy pop: light on fluid solos, heavy on daffy, pseudo-cosmic lyrics (''Every day is each day that's past''). Since the songs feel like Chili Peppers demos, with the guitarist singing like a less preening Anthony Kiedis, ''Shadows'' reveals Frusciante's influence on the band's recent touchy-feely work. Intermittently engaging if ultimately slight, it reveals the heart behind the shirtless torsos.

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