Ted Leo and the Pharmacists

Five years ago, Ted Leo was rocking house parties in Lawrence.

Nowadays, the workaholic power-pop baron commands bigger stages with the same DIY aplomb that made him a fan favorite in the first place. Leo’s latest, Living With the Living, is full of the same fiery punk spirit and go-for-broke hooks that defined earlier works such as The Tyranny of Distance. Enlivened by forays into Irish pub anthems and dub-inflected reggae, the record seethes with Leo’s pliable falsetto and the road-tested chops of the tightest trio since the Jam.