Elton John

The Diving Board

Capitol

Pop/Rock

A conscious evocation of the most melancholic and elliptical moments of Elton's earliest records.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Kings of Leon

Mechanical Bull

RCA

Pop/Rock

The Nashville band's sixth studio album is a hook-filled winner right out of the gate.

— Matt Collar

Drake

Nothing Was the Same

Cash Money

Rap

Almost everything is the same on the singing rapper's third album, except for some new lyrical concerns and slightly moodier loops.

— Tim Sendra

Sting

The Last Ship

A&M / Cherrytree Records / Polydor

Pop/Rock, Folk

Sting offers his own stripped-down versions of songs that appear in his Broadway musical.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Icona Pop

This Is... Icona Pop

Atlantic / Big Beat Records

Pop/Rock

The Swedish duo deliver more fizzy, electro-pop party anthems like their hit "I Love It."

— Heather Phares

Mazzy Star

Seasons of Your Day

Rhymes of an Hour Records

Pop/Rock

The atmospheric duo returns after a 17-year hiatus with a country twang- and blues-infused mix of dreamy pop.

— Matt Collar

Yoko Ono / Plastic Ono Band

Take Me to the Land of Hell

Chimera Music

Pop/Rock

The second album from the revitalized Plastic Ono band is just as moving and challenging as Between My Head and the Sky.

— Heather Phares

Metallica

Metallica Through the Never [Music from the Motion Picture]

Blackened Recordings

Pop/Rock, Stage & Screen

The thrash titans deliver a set list packed with metal classics on a live album that also doubles as the soundtrack to the band's IMAX film.

— Gregory Heaney

Pink Martini

Get Happy

Heinz / Heinz Records

Easy Listening, Pop/Rock

Featuring collaborations with Rufus Wainwright and Phyllis Diller, Pink Martini's fifth album is more bittersweet than its title suggests.

— Heather Phares

The Foreign Exchange

Love in Flying Colors

Foreign Exchange Music

R&B

Nicolay and Phonte's joyous and audacious fourth album brims with note-perfect incorporation of folk-soul, house, drum'n'bass, and broken beat.

— Andy Kellman

Alan Jackson

The Bluegrass Album

Capitol / EMI Nashville

Country

Jackson's warm, familiar voice drops right in among the banjos, mandolins, and fiddles like it was born to be there.

— Steve Leggett

Cher

Closer to the Truth

Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

Split between uptempo dance tracks and introspective ballads, Cher shows no signs of slowing down after half a century in the music biz.

— Tim Sendra

Chvrches

The Bones of What You Believe

Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

The Glasgow trio's debut delivers emotional, widescreen synth pop that became one of the definitive sounds of the 2010s.

— Heather Phares

Deer Tick

Negativity

Partisan

Pop/Rock

Dark without being depressive, this lively Americana-rooted album hides its tormented core in a multifaceted musical approach.

— Fred Thomas

Allen Toussaint

Songbook

Rounder

R&B

Elegant, joyous solo concert spotlighting Toussaint's rich songbook.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Frankie Rose

Herein Wild

Fat Possum Records

Pop/Rock

The dreamy singer/songwriter's third album is a thrilling synthesis of noise pop and synth pop.

— Tim Sendra

Jesu

Everyday I Get Closer to the Light from Which I Came

Avalanche

Pop/Rock

Justin Broadrick's melodic metal project delivers its most ambitious, texturally varied release to date.

— Thom Jurek

Katie Melua

Ketevan

Dramatico

Pop/Rock

The Georgian-born vocalist's sixth album is a cinematic and lyrical orchestral-tinged delight.

— Matt Collar

Musiq Soulchild / Syleena Johnson

9ine

Shanachie

Reggae

Written and recorded in nine days with Kemar McGregor, this is a surprising and pleasing diversion into contemporary reggae.

— Andy Kellman

Oh Land

Wishbone

ADA / Federal Prism

Pop/Rock

Danish ballet dancer turned pop princess offers up Grimes, Goldfrapp, and Lykke Li-inspired girly club beats, icy electro-pop, and wistful balladry.

— James Christopher Monger

Krewella

Get Wet [Clean]

Columbia

Electronic

The debut full-length from this Chicago dubstep/dance-pop party posse is the best kind of mindless, escapist fun.

— Fred Thomas

Sammy Hagar

Sammy Hagar & Friends

Frontiers Records

Pop/Rock

High-octane party rock from the Red Rocker and his pals.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Gov't Mule

Shout! [Bonus Disc]

Provogue Music Productions

Pop/Rock

On its Blue Note debut, the quartet delivers a striking set of new songs and sounds, great playing, and a new production standard.

— Thom Jurek

Matthew Shipp

Piano Sutras

Thirsty Ear

Jazz, Avant-Garde

On his first solo date in three years, the pianist and composer delivers a tour de force in relatively brief original works and covers.

— Thom Jurek

Thurston Moore / John Zorn

@

Tzadik Records

Avant-Garde, Jazz

Noisy and beautiful guitar/saxophone improv duos by two of N.Y.C.'s longer-running fringe dwellers, played with a conversational ease.

— Fred Thomas

R5

Louder

Hollywood

Pop/Rock

Fun and frothy debut from the Lynch family that's in the style of One Direction, but given their own innocent spin.

— Tim Sendra

Au Revoir Simone

Move in Spectrums

Moshi Moshi Records

Pop/Rock

After taking a long break, the synthesizer-playing trio return with their most sophisticated and moving record to date.

— Tim Sendra

Black Label Society

Unblackened

Entertainment One

Pop/Rock

Black Label Society offer up a bluesier, more restrained take on some of their classic tracks on this live double album.

— Gregory Heaney

Dave Foley

Relatively Well

New Wave Dynamics

Comedy/Spoken

Funny and surprisingly dark, Foley's debut comedy album arrives almost 20 years after the Kids in the Hall left television.

— David Jeffries

Tierney Sutton

After Blue

BFM Jazz

Jazz

Exchanging the standards of Great American Songbook for the songs of Joni Mitchell, the stylish vocalist delivers one of her finest recordings.

— Thom Jurek

Trentemøller

Lost

In My Room

Electronic, Pop/Rock

There's less dance music than early fans might like, but the Danish producer's third effort is a rangy, rich success.

— David Jeffries

The Waitresses

Just Desserts: The Complete Waitresses

Omnivore

Pop/Rock

The Akron-based new wave band's total output -- two albums and one EP -- is collected on this great set.

— David Jeffries

Dream Theater

Dream Theater

Roadrunner Records

Pop/Rock

This offering marks the full integration of drummer Mike Mangini in the creative process, and is one of the band's most successful efforts.

— Thom Jurek

Gappy Ranks

Shining Hope

HCM

Reggae

Featuring the single "Everything’s Gonna Be Alright," Gappy's 2013 effort is both positive and quite pop.

— David Jeffries

Eric Gales / Eric Gales Trio

Ghost Notes

Tone Center

Pop/Rock, Blues, Jazz, R&B

Crackles with energy, a sturdy mix of blues, rock, and straight-out funk fusion.

— Steve Leggett

Roy Harper

Man & Myth

Science Friction

Folk, Pop/Rock

On his first new album in 13 years, the singer/songwriter is at the peak of his powers as a writer and singer.

— Thom Jurek

Ha Ha Tonka

Lessons [Bonus Track]

Bloodshot

Country, Pop/Rock

A thematically balanced set that touches on issues of aging, damaged dreams, and the hope of rewriting one's life.

— Steve Leggett

Jason Derulo

Tattoos

Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

A little more romantic than his previous two albums, the singer's third full-length still features plenty of manchild EDM-pop.

— Andy Kellman

Kneebody

The Line

Concord

Jazz

The instrumental band's aggressive fourth album inspired by the rhythms of electronic dance music and avant-garde jazz.

— Matt Collar

K-Ci & JoJo

My Brother's Keeper

eOne

R&B

The Haileys return after a long absence with a no-frills R&B set that is true to their past and present.

— Andy Kellman

Lovers

A Friend in the World

Badman Recording Co.

Pop/Rock

Wistful yet propulsive folktronica with a feminist edge and an open heart from this Portland, Oregon-based trio's seventh long-player.

— James Christopher Monger

Matthew Good

Arrows of Desire

Frostbyte / Frostbyte Media

Pop/Rock

Matthew Good keeps the post-alternative dream of the late '90s alive on his 11th studio album.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

TRAAMS

Grin

FatCat Records

Pop/Rock

TRAAMS' first full-length balances punchy post-punk and lanky Krautrock with slightly unhinged intensity.

— Heather Phares

Veara

Growing Up Is Killing Me

Epitaph

Pop/Rock

Pop-punk takes a turn for the existential on Veara's third album, Growing Up Is Killing Me.

— Gregory Heaney

Ray Charles

Ray Charles Forever [CD/DVD] [Deluxe Edition]

Concord

R&B

Hodge-podge collection heavy on latter-day material released to commemorate the Genius' 2013 appearance on a postage stamp.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

David Angell / David Davidson / Anthony LaMarchina / Neal McCoy / Pam Sixfon / Mary Kathryn Van Osdale / Kris Wilkinson

Pride: A Tribute to Charley Pride

Slate Creek Records

Country

Friendly, understated tribute to Neal McCoy's idol, Charley Pride.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Sarah Jarosz

Build Me Up from Bones

Sugar Hill

Folk, Pop/Rock

On her fine third album, the singer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter displays an expansive musical view and a keen sense of discernment.

— Thom Jurek

The Proctors

Everlasting Light

Shelflife

Pop/Rock

The U.K. indie pop group's first album since the mid-'90s has a nicely nostalgic sound with a modern kick.

— Tim Sendra

Lenny Kravitz

Are You Gonna Go My Way [20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition]

Universal / Virgin

Pop/Rock

Expanded version of 1993 album contains 20 bonus tracks including B-sides, demos, and unreleased songs.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Megadeth

Countdown to Extinction: Live

Capitol / Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

Twenty years after the release of their best-selling and most loved album, these metal masters present a live rendition of those songs.

— Fred Thomas

Tronics

Say! What's This?

M'lady's Records

Pop/Rock

Collection of mostly unheard material from the entire lifespan of this bizarre and obscure gem of the post-punk era.

— Fred Thomas

Tronics

What's the Hubub Bub

M'lady's Records

Pop/Rock

Originally released on cassette in the early '80s, this incredible outsider band presents early looks at noise, collage, and post-punk minimalism.

— Fred Thomas

Elīna Garanča / Jonas Kaufmann / René Pape / Daniel Barenboim / Anja Harteros / La Scala Theater Orchestra

Verdi: Requiem

Decca

Classical

The soloists range from excellent to spectacular, with the phrasing of tenor Kaufmann and the tone of mezzo soprano Garanca as special standouts.

— James Manheim

Mari Kodama

Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Op. 101 & Op. 106 "Hammerklavier"

PentaTone Classics

Classical

Paired with perfect intimate engineering from the Dutch audiophile label PentaTone, this is an extraordinary Beethoven performance.

— James Manheim

Alan Oke / Giselle Allen / Steuart Bedford

Benjamin Britten: Peter Grimes

Signum Classics

Classical

This powerful concert performance of Peter Grimes was recorded at the 66th Aldeburgh Festival, marking the centennial of Britten's birth.

— Blair Sanderson

Contrapunctus / Owen Rees

Libera nos: The Cry of the Oppressed

Signum Classics

Classical

Each composer gives the listener a good idea of how Renaissance listeners heard stylistic differences among composers.

— James Manheim

Bryn Terfel / Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Homeward Bound

Deutsche Grammophon

Classical

Those tired of the heavy orchestration of releases by the likes of Sarah Brightman may well find Terfel a breath of fresh air.

— James Manheim

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