Music from the O.C.: Mix 5

1	Rock & Roll Queen / The Subways 2:49
2	Reason Is Treason / Kasabian 4:35
3	Wish I Was Dead, Pt. 2 / Shout Out Louds 4:36
4	Daft Punk Is Playing at My House / LCD Soundsystem 5:15
5	Publish My Love / Rogue Wave 3:44
6	Forever Young / Youth Group 4:30
7	A Requiem for O.M.M. / Of Montreal 2:19
8	Kids with Guns / Gorillaz 3:46
9	Na Na Na Na Naah / Kaiser Chiefs 2:59
10	Your Ex-Lover Is Dead / Stars 4:16
11	California 2005 / Phantom Planet 3:35
12	Hide and Seek / Imogen Heap 4:27

Barnes & Noble

The scandalous drama The O.C. has become known as much for its taste-making music choices as for its snappy dialogue. The OC: Mix 5 is quite possibly the best yet, featuring a great lineup of friendly indie rock you may remember as the soundtrack to punch-ups, lesbian kisses, dirty double-crosses, and other soapy plotlines. If the names are less recognizable this time out -- no Beck, Killers, or Modest Mouse -- there are also no clunkers. For the party, you get LCD Soundsystem's raucous and funky "Daft Punk Is Playing at My House," the instantly infectious "Na Na Na Na Naa" by Brit band Kaiser Chiefs, and Kasabian's driving "Reason Is Treason." If you're looking to chill poolside, there's Stars' lush "Your Ex-Lover Is Dead," Imogen Heap's unsettlingly beautiful "Hide and Seek," and Phantom Planet's downbeat reworking of The O.C.'s theme song, "California." There's also the requisite cover (Youth Group's emo-ish take on Alphaville's new wave ballad "Forever Young"), and newcomers the Subways introduce themselves with their amps-to-11 single "Rock & Roll Queen." The O.C. may not be the must-see television it once was, but there is no doubt that the folks in the show's music department are still at the top of their game. Bill Pearis

All Music Guide

While season three of The O.C. may not have quite the impact of the show's earlier episodes, the series' musical compilations keep getting better and sharper. The O.C. Mix 5 may be the most eclectic and distinctive collection of music associated with the show yet, and as its yearbook-like artwork suggests, it also works well as a time capsule of alternative rock trends from the mid-2000s. Reflecting the influx of British bands fusing post-punk, new wave, and Britpop, the collection includes the Primal Scream-isms of Kasabian's "Reason Is Treason," and the Kaiser Chiefs' supremely snotty "Na Na Na Na Naaah" is the band at its Blur-meets-Menswear-iest. There's more of an emphasis on straight-up indie pop on this collection too, with the Shout Out Louds' "Wish I Was Dead, Pt. 2," Rogue Wave's "Publish My Love," and Of Montreal's "Requiem for O.M.M" among the standout tracks. Meanwhile, LCD Soundsystem's electro-rock workout "Daft Punk Is Playing at My House" provides a brash contrast to all of that sweetness and light. Not all of the soundtrack spends its time chasing trends, however: the Youth Group's cover of "Forever Young" fits into the atmospheric, bittersweet sound that used to be the quintessential "O.C. sound," while Phantom Planet's "California 2005" is an acoustic version of the series' and band's definitive song. Fellow O.C. soundtrack alumni Imogen Heap returns and closes the album with the breathtakingly lovely "Hide and Seek," which ranks among the most beautiful songs these compilations have showcased. Though the album makes some strange omissions, leaving off songs by Beck, Bloc Party, Coldplay, and M.I.A. that all played prominent roles on various episodes, and focusing on less obvious choices, The O.C. Mix 5 comes pretty close to the handmade intimacy of a mixtape or playlist. Heather Phares