MILEY CYRUS”When I Look at You”After the colossal success of “Party in the USA,” it’s hard to believe “When I Look at You” won’t also be a hit. Mimicking last year’s single “The Climb” in its passionate balladry, the songwriting behind “When I Look at You”-courtesy of legendary pop producer Dr. Luke-is archetypal but close to flawless. Cyrus sounds more distanced from her TV counterpart Hannah Montana than ever here; her pipes fit the song’s grandiose pop-rock template just as well as any other pop star in recent history. Unfortunately, this newfound homogeneity combined with the song’s own typicality leave the track coming off as distinctly flavorless. In retrospect, it makes sense that the EP “When I Look at You” appears in a Wal-Mart exclusive; Cyrus’ music is about as close as art can be to a commodity.

LUPE FIASCO”I’m Beamin'”Lupe Fiasco is inarguably a breath of fresh air within the void that is modern hip-hop, and he embodies this perfectly in “I’m Beamin’.” Though only promoted as a single for the upcoming album Lasers in response to the song’s leak on the Internet, the release is no mistake; “I’m Beamin’ ” is definitely impressive. While Lupe doesn’t cover much new ground with the song lyrically, his message is strong, his metaphors are ace and his flow is better than ever. If nothing more, “I’m Beamin’ ” is simply a reminder of Lupe’s skill and relevance. But it’s also home to one of the Neptunes’ most satisfying and fitting beats in a while. With a jazzy chord progression, undulating synths, pulsing 808s and tasteful string flourishes, it’s a masterful production job and unmistakably Lupe. Lasers can’t come soon enough.

YEASAYER”O.N.E.””O.N.E.” may be the purest pop tune on Yeasayer’s new album Odd Blood, but only on its own terms. As was true on 2007’s All Hour Cymbals, “O.N.E.” is host to a jumble of worldly sounds as well as many otherworldly ones. Singer Chris Keating manages to be both nostalgic and uplifting with the track’s resounding proclamation of singlehood, and the accompanying instrumentation-equal parts Peter Gabriel, MGMT and dub-mirrors this effectively. It’s easy to trace the song’s blend of textural exploration and idealist pop songwriting to Animal Collective and, well, most other indie rock bands from the latter half of the past decade, but Yeasayer manages to keep its style afloat by avoiding pretension-“O.N.E.” is a stellar modern pop song.