Featured New Releases for
May 14, 2013

Album cover for Demi by Demi Lovato
Demi Lovato

Demi

Polydor
Pop/Rock
Demi Lovato tries a little bit of everything -- big ballads, Katy Perry pop, Miley Cyrus dance -- on their self-titled fourth album.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Album cover for Heart of Nowhere by Noah and the Whale
Noah and the Whale

Heart of Nowhere

Mercury Limited / Mercury Records / Universal
Pop/Rock
Matured and settled, this record sees the band leave its nostalgic youth behind in a blaze of '80s-inspied rock.

— Scott Kerr

Album cover for Silver Wilkinson by BibioEditors' Choice
Bibio

Silver Wilkinson

Warp
Electronic
Bibio's sixth album revisits the pastoral sounds of his pre-Ambivalence Avenue work, delivering some of his loveliest and most organic-sounding music.

— Heather Phares

Album cover for Endless Fantasy by AnamanaguchiEditors' Choice
Anamanaguchi

Endless Fantasy

Dream.Hax / Polyvinyl
Pop/Rock
The group's second album is an ultra-catchy chiptune classic built on the manic collision of hacked game consoles and live instruments.

— Tim Sendra

Album cover for Secondhand Rapture by MS MR
MS MR

Secondhand Rapture

Columbia / RCA
Pop/Rock
MS MR's debut shines brightest when the duo plays up the contrast between passionate vocals and aloof instrumentation.

— Heather Phares

Album cover for Lip Lock by Eve
Eve

Lip Lock

From the Rib Music
Rap
The Ruff Ryders diva and sometimes star of Glee returns with an album that's more positive and pop than previous efforts.

— David Jeffries

Album cover for Empty Estate EP by Wild Nothing
Wild Nothing

Empty Estate EP

Captured Tracks
Pop/Rock
Following the brilliant Nocturne, this seven-song EP explores several different stylistic avenues of the band's shimmering pop sound.

— Fred Thomas

Album cover for A by Agnetha Fältskog
Agnetha Fältskog

A

Polydor / Verve
Pop/Rock
ABBA's Agnetha Fältskog returns with the low-key, classy A, her first collection of English pop songs in over 25 years.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Album cover for New Orleans by PJ Morton
PJ Morton

New Orleans

Cash Money
R&B
The Dove-winning songwriter and performing Maroon 5 keyboardist mixes upbeat R&B, rock, and pop for the Cash Money label.

— Andy Kellman

Album cover for Dungeonesse by DungeonesseEditors' Choice
Dungeonesse

Dungeonesse

Secretly Canadian
Pop/Rock, R&B
Jenn Wasner (Wye Oak) and Jon Ehrens (Art Department) do modern R&B with love and respect, plus great songs and powerhouse vocals.

— Tim Sendra

Album cover for Some Say I So I Say Light by GhostpoetEditors' Choice
Ghostpoet

Some Say I So I Say Light

Play It Again Sam
Rap
Strange and sumptuous, London's Ghostpoet remains the most aptly named rapper in the game on this excellent sophomore effort.

— David Jeffries

Album cover for Promises by The Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion

Promises

Absentee Recordings
Pop/Rock
The band's fourth album, the Billy Bush-produced Promises, is an epic, cinematic album of soaring rock anthems.

— Matt Collar

Album cover for Crawling Up the Stairs by Pure X
Pure X

Crawling Up the Stairs

Merok
Pop/Rock
Written during a particularly bad year, struggle and flailing mark almost every song on the second album from Austin ambient indie rockers.

— Fred Thomas

Album cover for Love Will... by Trace Adkins
Trace Adkins

Love Will...

Show Dog / Show Dog Nashville / Show Dog Universal Music
Country
Trace Adkins refashions himself as a country loverman on Love Will....

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Album cover for Bright Sunny South by Sam Amidon
Sam Amidon

Bright Sunny South

Nonesuch
Folk, Pop/Rock
This modern folk singer continues his series of brightly reworked traditional songs with a Mariah Carey cover snuck in for good measure.

— Fred Thomas

Album cover for A Walking Fire by Brooklyn Rider
Brooklyn Rider

A Walking Fire

Mercury Classics
Avant-Garde, Classical
Brooklyn Rider combines a crossover image with a rigorous approach to contemporary repertory, choosing energetic pieces that might well appeal to rock audiences.

— James Manheim

Album cover for Thrash & Burn by Ariel Pink
Ariel Pink

Thrash & Burn

Human Ear Music
Pop/Rock
This collection of some of Pink's earliest work ranges from musique concréte-inspired experiments to lo-fi pop.

— Heather Phares

Album cover for Realiser by C V L T S
C V L T S

Realiser

Aguirre Records
Pop/Rock
Buried in dense layers of lo-fi murk, this womb-like ambient record takes a while to get used to, but then becomes difficult to leave.

— Fred Thomas

Album cover for Kids in LA by Kisses
Kisses

Kids in LA

Cascine
Pop/Rock
The L.A. duo's second album is less disco and more synth pop, with more darkness but also catchier songs.

— Tim Sendra

Album cover for Walking Field by Peals
Peals

Walking Field

Thrill Jockey
Pop/Rock
The members of Future Islands and Double Dagger go against the grain and make a pastoral, meditative, instrumental album.

— Jason Lymangrover

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