Foo Fighters

Sonic Highways

Columbia / RCA / Roswell Records

Pop/Rock

The veteran alt-rockers turn unabashed classic rockers on the eight-song aural American travelog Sonic Highways.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Garth Brooks

Man Against Machine

Pearl / RCA

Country

The most successful country singer in history returns from retirement with a comfortable, satisfying record.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Pink Floyd

The Endless River

Rhino

Pop/Rock

Largely instrumental, unexpectedly moving farewell from David Gilmour and Nick Mason.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Marianne Faithfull

Give My Love to London

Easy Sound Recording Company / Naïve

Pop/Rock

On her fifth 21st century album the singer co-writes with a contemporary cast to build a bridge between her musical past and present.

— Thom Jurek

Big K.R.I.T.

Cadillactica

Def Jam

Rap

The rapper grows and stuns on his most eclectic and satisfying effort to date.

— David Jeffries

Röyksopp

The Inevitable End

Arts & Crafts

Electronic

The Norwegian electro-pop wizards say goodbye to the album format with a star-studded, vocal-heavy finale.

— Timothy Monger

Juan Luis Guerra / Juan Luis Guerra y 440

Todo Tiene Su Hora

Universal

Latin

The Dominican legend delivers a stellar collection of bachatas, merengues, sons, and salsas, all done with a sense of musical adventure.

— Thom Jurek

The New Basement Tapes

Lost on the River

Harvest / Island

Pop/Rock, Country, Folk

Unused Bob Dylan lyrics written during the Basement Tapes sessions of 1968 are set to music by Elvis Costello, Jim James, Mumford & Sons, and others.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Damien Rice

My Favourite Faded Fantasy

Atlantic

Pop/Rock, Folk

The singer/songwriter's long-in-the-works third album consists of eight exquisitely sculpted songs.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead

IX

Dine Alone

Pop/Rock

The venerable band's ninth album opts for a more personal, subdued approach even as it incorporates orchestral arrangements and literary allusions.

— Heather Phares

Bedhead

1992-1998

Numero Group

Pop/Rock

Complete studio recordings made during the lifespan of this beautiful and restrained Dallas slowcore quintet.

— Fred Thomas

Rumer

Into Colour

Atlantic

Pop/Rock

The British singer/songwriter's third album of introspective, '60s and '70s-influenced soft pop.

— Matt Collar

Cult of Youth

Final Days

Sacred Bones

Pop/Rock

Expanded into a concrete lineup, this long running goth-folk project has never sounded more exacting or driven.

— Fred Thomas

Mouse on Mars

21 Again: Collaborations

Monkeytown

Electronic, Pop/Rock

The pioneering electronic duo celebrates its 21st anniversary with a collection that's as entertaining to hear as it must have been to make.

— Heather Phares

Nick Jonas

Nick Jonas

Island / Safehouse Records

Pop/Rock

Despite its stylish flair, this solo album from the former Jonas Brother is at its best when it relies on the classics.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Oh Land

Earth Sick

Kobalt / Tusk or Tooth

Pop/Rock

The creative Danish indie pop expat delivers another idiosyncratic set full of strong hooks and some darker tones.

— Timothy Monger

Parkay Quarts

Content Nausea

What's Yr Rupture?

Pop/Rock

Quickly realized grab bag of erratic punk and other odds and ends of cerebral rock and unexpected weirdness.

— Fred Thomas

Machine Head

Bloodstone & Diamonds

Nuclear Blast

Pop/Rock

After three years and personnel changes, these Bay Area metallers deliver a provocative, musically and sonically ambitious set.

— Thom Jurek

Dream Police

Hypnotized

Sacred Bones

Pop/Rock

Shape-shifting, darkwave and Krautrock-inspired debut from members of Brooklyn-based punk/bar band the Men.

— James Christopher Monger

Antony and the Johnsons / Charles Atlas

Turning

Secretly Canadian

Pop/Rock, Stage & Screen

Soundtrack to a documentary about the group's unusual 2006 tour loses the subtext, but the performances are truly brilliant.

— Mark Deming

iamamiwhoami

Blue

To Whom It May Concern

Pop/Rock

Jonna Lee and Claes Björklund's third collaboration trades spooky trip-hop for songs that evoke a cloudless day at the beach.

— Heather Phares

Whitney Houston

Live: Her Greatest Performances

Arista / Legacy

R&B

Tracing all the way back to her 1983 appearance on The Merv Griffin Show, this compiles an assortment of televised performances.

— Andy Kellman

Zac Brown / Zac Brown Band

Greatest Hits So Far...

Atlantic / Southern Ground

Country

Excellent compilation of the ZBB's 14 charting hits from 2008-2013.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Hookworms

The Hum

Weird World

Pop/Rock

The group's impressive second album has all the noise and fury of its first, but is also more focused and song-oriented.

— Tim Sendra

Mark McGuire

Noctilucence

Dead Oceans

Pop/Rock, Electronic

Lengthy five-song EP exploring '80s soundtrack-styled instrumentals, ambient drones, and pastoral compositions.

— Fred Thomas

The Dø

Shake Shook Shaken

Wagram

Pop/Rock

The Finnish/French duo transforms itself into a sharp-edged electropop outfit with striking and often affecting results.

— Heather Phares

Queen

Queen Forever

Hollywood

Pop/Rock

Odd compilation of album tracks highlighted by three reworked old songs, including one Freddie Mercury duet with Michael Jackson.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Songs: Ohia

Didn't It Rain [Bonus Tracks]

Secretly Canadian

Pop/Rock

Jason Molina's sixth album as Songs: Ohia, recorded with Jim and Jennie of the Pinetops.

— Charity Stafford

The Paperhead

Africa Avenue

Trouble in Mind

Pop/Rock

The Nashville time trippers' third album adds some new sounds to their psych pop revivalism: a little country, bossa nova, and German prog, to be exact.

— Tim Sendra

Torn Hawk

Let's Cry and Do Pushups at the Same Time

Mexican Summer

Electronic

The experimental guitarist/composer's commentary on nostalgia is more seamless and engaging than ever on his second full-length.

— Heather Phares

Tears for Fears

Songs from the Big Chair [Deluxe Edition]

Mercury / Mercury Records / Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

The commercial triumph and artistic tour de force, in a deluxe edition full of bonus tracks.

— Stanton Swihart

Charlie Boyer & the Voyeurs / Voyeurs / The Voyeurs

Rhubarb Rhubarb

Heavenly

Pop/Rock

On their second album, the Television-obsessed band shorten their name and manage to lose their spark, too.

— Tim Sendra

Adrian Crowley

Some Blue Morning [LP]

Chemikal Underground Records

Pop/Rock

On his seventh full-length, the Galwegian singer and songwriter delivers the masterpiece he's promised from the beginning.

— Thom Jurek

bis

The Anthology: 20 Years of Antiseptic Poetry

Do Yourself In

Pop/Rock

Massive compilation spanning this Scottish electro-punk trio's winding oeuvre, including unreleased demos and new songs.

— Fred Thomas

Hans-Joachim Roedelius

Kollektion 02: Roedelius: Electronic Music

Bureau B

New Age, Avant-Garde, Electronic, Pop/Rock, Classical

Curated by Lloyd Cole, this compilation focuses on the minimal celestial synth beauty of the Krautrock pioneer.

— Fred Thomas

Ex Cops

Daggers

Downtown Records

Pop/Rock

Sophomore album of catchy, '80s and '90s-influenced pop from the duo of Brian Harding and Amalie Bruun.

— Matt Collar

Howe Gelb / Radian

Radian Verses Howe Gelb

Radian Releases

Pop/Rock

The experimental Viennese rock trio take on the Tucson space cowboy in a mysterious, murky, engaging collaboration.

— Thom Jurek

Richard Dawson

Nothing Important

Domino / Weird World

Pop/Rock

Second album from the U.K. indie folk eccentric is focused on a pair of long compositions full of noisy, expressive guitar.

— Mark Deming

2:54

The Other I

Bella Union

Pop/Rock

The noirish, London-based sister band tramps further into the woods on their dreamy yet threatening sophomore set.

— Timothy Monger

Frontier Ruckus

Sitcom Afterlife

Quite Scientific

Pop/Rock

Michigan alt-country act delivers a poppier sound on their fourth album, but their atmospheric music is still literate and strong.

Love

Black Beauty

High Moon

Pop/Rock

Long-lost 1973 album from Arthur Lee and a lineup of players steeped in rock and funk.

— Mark Deming

Gene Clark

Two Sides to Every Story

High Moon

Pop/Rock

The 1977 effort from the former Byrds vocalist, a more elegant and organic follow-up to the controversial No Other.

— Mark Deming

Hail Mary Mallon

Bestiary

Rhymesayers Entertainment

Rap

Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic return to their supergroup and offer an album on a Run the Jewels level.

— David Jeffries

Icky Boyfriends

Live in San Francisco

Castle Face

Avant-Garde, Pop/Rock

Live documentation of one of the first shows back for this reunited Bay Area gutter rock trio.

— Fred Thomas

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard

I'm in Your Mind Fuzz

Castle Face / Heavenly

Pop/Rock

Fractured, lo-fi, and occasionally pop-tastic psych rock from this Aussie collective.

— James Christopher Monger

Nots

We Are Nots

Ex-Cult / Goner Records

Pop/Rock

Old-school punk and bursts of out-there noise raucously coexist on this powerful debut from the Memphis garage punk quartet.

— Mark Deming

Various Artists

All Your Friend's Friends

K Records / K Recs

Pop/Rock, Rap

Pacific Northwest hop-hop collective Thee Xntrx put a fresh spin on lo-fi rock nuggets from the K Records catalog.

— Mark Deming

Cut Copy

Cut Copy Presents: Oceans Apart

Cutters Records

Electronic, Pop/Rock

Continuous mix of banging dancefloor action from Melbourne, Australia-based artists, lovingly put together by hometown heroes Cut Copy.

— Tim Sendra

Celestial Shore

Enter Ghost

Hometapes

Pop/Rock

The Brooklyn trio tones down the music theory and delivers a more accessible pop-oriented release with tinges of both the Zombies and Pixies.

— Timothy Monger

Cool Ghouls

A Swirling Fire Burning Through the Rye

Empty Cellar

Pop/Rock

The Bay Area rockers deliver a classy and spirited '60s-inspired set that could be a lost Dukes of Stratosphear album.

— Timothy Monger

Serengeti

Kenny Dennis III

Joyful Noise

Rap

Serengeti's Kenny character gets funky across America on this excellent, and quite bizarre, concept album.

— David Jeffries

Spiders

Shake Electric

Spinefarm Records

Pop/Rock

A smoke-filled stadium blend of "Magic Man"-era Heart and classic New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

— James Christopher Monger

Edwyn Collins / Carwyn Ellis / Sebastian Lewsley

The Possibilities Are Endless [Original Soundtrack]

AED Records

Pop/Rock, Stage & Screen

Introspective and powerful music from a film that chronicles the recovery of the brilliant singer/songwriter.

— Tim Sendra

Einstürzende Neubauten

Lament

BMG Rights Management / Love Da Records

Pop/Rock

The veteran avant industrial band takes on the topic of World War I, a war they believe never truly ended.

— David Jeffries

Energy Slime

New Dimensional

Mint / Mint Records

Pop/Rock

The Vancouver synth poppers strike just the right balance between catchy and mischievous on their freewheeling debut EP.

— Heather Phares

Sylvie Simmons

Sylvie

Light in the Attic Records

Pop/Rock, Country

Debut album from the veteran music writer is a deceptively simple effort filled with charm, wisdom, and fine songs.

— Mark Deming

Recondite

Iffy

Innervisions

Electronic

Not as intense as its cover indicates, Lorenz Brunner's third album offers more of the producer's downcast, melodic techno for dreamers.

— Andy Kellman

Tarwater

Adrift

Bureau B

Pop/Rock, Electronic

Almost 20 years into their craft, the German duo return with another collection of dense electronic pop deconstruction.

— Fred Thomas

The Mighty Sceptres

All Hail the Mighty Sceptres!

Ubiquity

R&B

Debut album from this British retro-soul combo led by guitarist Nick Radford and vocalist Angeline Morrison.

— Mark Deming

Marc-André Hamelin

Debussy: Images; Préludes II

Hyperion

Classical

This fine Debussy recital, with nary a conventionally virtuosic work in sight is a recording that everyone ought to hear.

— James Manheim

Nelson Freire / Riccardo Chailly / Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra

Beethoven: Concerto No. 5 "Emperor"; Sonata Op. 111

Decca

Classical

This is a worthy, slightly unorthodox pair of performances from an underappreciated veteran of the piano.

— James Manheim

Virpi Räisänen / Hannu Lintu / Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra

Berio: Sinfonia; Calmo; Ritirata Notturna di Madrid

Ondine

Classical

Hannu Lintu leads the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in a powerful rendition of Luciano Berio's avant-garde masterpiece, Sinfonia.

— Blair Sanderson

Plácido Domingo

Encanto del Mar: Mediterranean Songs

Sony Classical / Sony Music

Classical

This album is attractive: not only does the voice retain a characteristic clarity, but Domingo executes the project with the class expected of him.

— James Manheim

Denis Kozhukhin

Haydn: Piano Sonatas

Onyx Classics

Classical

Kozhukhin's is both brilliant and daring, with the Piano Sonata in B minor, Hob. 16/32, scaled back, but still holding together convincingly.

— James Manheim

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