Kendrick Lamar

To Pimp a Butterfly

Aftermath

Rap

Already excellent Compton rapper transcends to new levels of musicality and expression with this visceral, heartbreaking, and unrelenting masterstroke.

— Fred Thomas

Courtney Barnett

Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit.

Mom + Pop Music

Pop/Rock

Invigorating, compelling debut from the wry and furious Australian singer/songwriter.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

JEFF the Brotherhood

Wasted on the Dream

Infinity Cat Recordings

Pop/Rock

A partial embrace of fuzz-drenched stoner rock from these Weezer devotees.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Van Morrison

Duets: Re-Working the Catalogue

RCA

Pop/Rock

The Belfast Soul Man re-records 16 of his songs with a like number of duet partners, including Michael Bublé and Bobby Womack.

— Mark Deming

Tom Hobden / Matt Ingram / Laura Marling / Nick Pini / Ruth De Turberville

Short Movie

Ribbon Music

Pop/Rock

The young singer/songwriter's fourth album in just five years deftly pairs American west coast mysticism with bucolic, Sandy Denny-era English folk.

— James Christopher Monger

Nellie McKay

My Weekly Reader

429 Records

Pop/Rock, Vocal

The neo-cabaret singer sashays her way through a '60s songbook divided between folk-rock, oldies standards, and underground satire.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Action Bronson

Mr. Wonderful

Atlantic

Rap

On this excellent LP, the chef turned rapper enters the big leagues with all his underground cred intact.

— David Jeffries

Lightning Bolt

Fantasy Empire

Thrill Jockey

Pop/Rock

Legendary noise rock duo embraces a newfound clarity in the heightened production values of their sixth album.

— Fred Thomas

The Cribs

For All My Sisters

RED Music Solutions / Sony Music

Pop/Rock

The band collaborates with producer Ric Ocasek on some of its poppiest misfit anthems yet.

— Heather Phares

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

Freedom Tower: No Wave Dance Party 2015

Mom + Pop Music

Pop/Rock

More fractured, electrified, postmodern gutbucket from the band that defined the form; their toughest, most grooving set since 1996.

— Mark Deming

Fantasma

Free Love

Soundway

Electronic, International, Pop/Rock

The debut full-length from the South African supergroup weds electronic music to township traditions, punk, funk, and psych.

— Thom Jurek

Jamie Bell / Sam Dook / The Go! Team / Rob Jones / Ian Parton

The Scene Between

Memphis Industries

Pop/Rock

The band's fourth album takes a dream pop turn, with a cadre of unheralded female vocalists and Ian Parton in full control again.

— Tim Sendra

LoneLady

Hinterland

Warp

Pop/Rock

Inspired by Julie Campbell's time exploring Manchester's decaying outskirts, her second album finds funky, joyful resilience in isolation.

— Heather Phares

Surf City

Jekyll Island

Fire Records

Pop/Rock

The band's third album sees them sticking with their winning formula of noisy indie rock and poppy noise-rock without missing a step.

— Tim Sendra

Vetiver

Complete Strangers

Easy Sound Recording Company

Pop/Rock

Vetiver add gentle electronics to their smooth soft rock sound, stepping even further away from their folky beginnings.

— Tim Sendra

Liturgy

The Ark Work

Thrill Jockey

Pop/Rock

On the long-awaited follow-up to Aesthethica, the Brooklyn quartet spiral out from the margins of heavy metal.

— Thom Jurek

Chastity Belt

Time to Go Home

Hardly Art

Pop/Rock

Second album from this Seattle group that blends beguiling, mysterious guitar songs with sharply funny lyrical themes.

— Fred Thomas

Smallpools

Lovetap!

RCA

Pop/Rock

Hooky, neon-colored, '80s arena rock- and synth pop-influenced debut from the Los Angeles outfit.

— Matt Collar

The Silence

The Silence

Drag City

Pop/Rock

Excellent debut by Masaki Batoh's new band uses psychedelic rock and folk sources to travel the inner spaceways.

— Thom Jurek

Big Data

2.0

Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

Themes of humans vs. technology pervade this melodic, groove-filled, distorted, uneasy electropop debut from Brooklyn producer/remixer Alan Wilkis.

— Marcy Donelson

Bombadil

Hold On

Ramseur Records

Pop/Rock

The indie combo's tuneful fifth album offers their defining wit and eclectic instrumentation with a still jolly but more heartache-filled song set.

— Marcy Donelson

Buena Vista Social Club

Lost and Found

Atlantic / Elektra / Warner Bros. / Warner Music / World Circuit

Jazz, International, Latin

An excellent collection of unreleased tracks from the historic 1996 sessions as well as live material.

— Thom Jurek

Male Gaze

Gale Maze

Castle Face

Pop/Rock

The San Francisco group's debut shows them to be experts at excavating and blowing out the desperately dour post-punk sound of the early '80s.

— Tim Sendra

Tartu Popi Ja Roki Instituut

Marienbad

Minty Fresh

Pop/Rock

Estonian pop collective's third album shows them expanding their sound, while also sharpening their pop hooks.

— Tim Sendra

Ben Goldberg

Orphic Machine

Royal Potato Family

Jazz, Avant-Garde, International

This large-scale work based on Allen Grossman's poetry is a masterful creation of artful sophistication and accessibility.

— Thom Jurek

Seasick Steve

Sonic Soul Surfer

Bronzerat Records

Folk, Blues

The new old blues stomper is still rocking hard on this set, but not quite hard enough to fill a full hour.

Uffe

Radio Days

Tartelet

Electronic

The Danish producer's first full-length expands on his smoky version of house with seductive flair.

— Heather Phares

Toto

Toto XIV

Frontiers Records

Pop/Rock

Still studio slick, the latter-day Toto nevertheless possess a surprising sense of urgency and adventure here.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Happyness

Weird Little Birthday

Bar/None Records

Pop/Rock

Shambolic, idiosyncratic, and utterly endearing '90s slacker rock-influenced debut from the British trio.

— Matt Collar

Hayden

Hey Love

Arts & Crafts

Pop/Rock

Eighth album from Canadian indie folksinger finds power in graceful, melancholic statements and expanded instrumentation.

— Fred Thomas

Jam City

Dream a Garden

Night Slugs

Electronic

Fascinating stylistic shift from Jack Latham, who swaps metallic dancefloor tracks for contemplative, warped dream pop.

— Andy Kellman

Leo Welch

I Don't Prefer No Blues

Big Legal Mess Records

Blues

On his second killer effort, the octogenarian Mississippi bluesman revels in the heart of a juke joint Saturday night.

— Thom Jurek

The Accelerators / Kepi Ghoulie

Fun in the Dark

Eccentric Pop Records / Kepiland

Pop/Rock

Kepi and young Dutch punk revivalists redo the Ghoulies' 1999 album, supercharging it and adding 25% more fun.

— Tim Sendra

Sorcerer

In the Shadow of the Inverted Cross

Metal Blade

Pop/Rock

The veteran Swedish doom metal outfit's debut album was over 25 years in the making.

— James Christopher Monger

Mugwump

Unspell

Subfield

Electronic

Dark, subtle, yet sharp dance music fills the excellent debut album from this Belgian producer.

— David Jeffries

Kevin Eubanks / Stanley Jordan

Duets

Mack Avenue

Jazz

Intimate, relaxed, musical conversation between these two giants of contemporary jazz guitar.

— Matt Collar

Too Close to Touch

Nerve Endings

Epitaph

Pop/Rock

The debut from the Kentucky-based post-hardcore outfit is as emotionally frayed as it is shot through with moments of soaring, alt-rock grandeur.

— James Christopher Monger

Nisennenmondai

Live at Clouds Hill

Clouds Hill

Pop/Rock

The trio's remarkably precise avant dance-rock gets a shot of adrenaline in this live document recorded at a Hamburg studio.

— Heather Phares

Roger Taylor

Strange Frontier [Bonus Tracks]

Omnivore

Pop/Rock

Second full-length solo album of dynamic, socially and politically aware rock from the Queen drummer.

— Matt Collar

Roger Taylor

Fun in Space [Bonus Tracks]

Omnivore

Pop/Rock

The debut album from the Queen drummer showcases his rough, soulful voice.

— Matt Collar

The Groovie Ghoulies

Appetite for Adrenochrome [Expanded Edition]

Green Door Recording Co.

Pop/Rock

The California pop-punk legends first album is a fun and energetic blast of good times and good natured chills.

— Tim Sendra

Jason Beck / Chilly Gonzales

Chambers

Gentle Threat

Pop/Rock

Contemporary pop and 18th century chamber music become unlikely partners on this album from the composer and pianist.

— Mark Deming

Hit the Lights

Summer Bones [LP]

Pure Noise

Pop/Rock

A slickly produced set of festival-ready emo pop singalongs shot through with enough punk/hardcore spirit to appease the breakdown crowd.

— James Christopher Monger

James Bay

Chaos and the Calm

Republic / Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

Debut album from the British singer and songwriter with a passionate, soulful blend of pop, folk, R&B, and rock.

— Mark Deming

People of the North

Era of Manifestations

Thrill Jockey

Pop/Rock

Bobby Matador and Kid Millions of Oneida deliver more indie rock improvisations with their free-wheeling side project.

— Mark Deming

Mark Gardener / Robin Guthrie

Universal Road

Soleil Après Minuit

Pop/Rock

Old dream pop vets get together to concoct a warmly melancholic oasis of calm and gentle reserve.

— Tim Sendra

Strung Out

Transmission.Alpha.Delta

Fat Wreck Chords

Pop/Rock

Six years between albums hasn't softened the impact of this band's blend of punk, metal, and electronics one bit.

— Mark Deming

Riccardo Minasi / Ensemble Resonanz

C.P.E. Bach: 6 Hamburg Symphonies

C2 Hamburg / Es-Dur

Classical

Riccardo Minasi and Ensemble Resonanz give C.P.E. Bach's Hamburg Symphonies close-to-period style performances on modern instruments.

— Blair Sanderson

The Knights

The Ground Beneath Our Feet

Warner Classics

Classical

The Knights present a program devoted to concerto grosso, drawing on Baroque, neo-classical, minimalist, and crossover examples.

— Blair Sanderson

Voces8

Lux

Decca

Classical

This departs from earlier easy-on-the-ears collections in several ways, and it's worth the time of anyone who likes virtuoso choral singing

— James Manheim

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet / Yan Pascal Tortelier

Stravinsky: Concertos

Chandos

Classical

The piano wasn't central to Igor Stravinsky's output, but the works on this SACD show that it was still prominently used.

— Blair Sanderson

Nicholas Phan / Michael Leopold / Ann Marie Morgan

A Painted Tale

Avie

Classical

This is a major step in the interpretation of early English song, beautifully recorded by Avie at Skywalker Studios in California.

— James Manheim

Piotr Beczała

The French Collection

Deutsche Grammophon

Classical

Beczala is both dramatically and vocally convincing, getting exciting support from the Orchestre de L'Opéra National de Lyon under Altinoglu.

— James Manheim

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