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ARTIST: PET SHOP BOYS

DVD: CUBISM

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Pet Shop Boys had a lot to celebrate in 2006. Their album "Fundamental" was hailed by critics as a return to form and garnered a Grammy Award nod. This DVD, taped November 14, 2006, in Mexico City, caps a banner year. The nearly two-hour set is packed with hits like "West End Girls," "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)" and "I'm With Stupid," and closes with the one-two punch of the epic "It's a Sin" followed by the joyful camp of "Go West." Extras include a classy photo gallery and an eight-minute, artsy mini-documentary. There's also a running audio commentary of the concert itself with group members Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant and the film's director, David Barnard. While sometimes informative, the participants aren't terribly chatty. But even casual fans will enjoy the DVD, thanks to the hit-filled set list and the ace production of the show.

ARTIST: FLAMING LIPS

DVD: THE LEGENDARY CONCERT IN OKLAHOMA CITY: U.F.O.'S AT THE ZOO (Warner Bros.)

They've been around for more than 20 years, but the Flaming Lips didn't start coming into their own as entertainers until right around the beginning of the new millennium. That's when they started showering their audiences with confetti and enormous balloons, and singer Wayne Coyne began tumbling over the audience in a giant bubble. One thing remained the same: The band's druggie art-pop was played at deafening levels. All of this has turned the Lips into one of the best party bands and live acts ever. So how well does this 2006 two-hour hometown gig at the Oklahoma City Zoo capture all that chaos and euphoria? Fairly well, but no DVD could really channel the energy of what it's like to be in a Lips audience. But you certainly see what you're missing, and then some (including a tour of the zoo with Coyne).

Reuters/Billboard