Featured New Album Releases

Mumford & Sons

Wilder Mind

Glassnote Entertainment Group

Pop/Rock

On their third album, Mumford & Sons ditch the banjo and folk for sleek modern rock.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

My Morning Jacket

The Waterfall

ATO / Capitol

Pop/Rock

Seventh studio album from Jim James and company sounds eclectic and polished, but not always inspired.

— Mark Deming

Hiatus Kaiyote

Choose Your Weapon

Flying Buddha

R&B

A double dose of dizzying brilliance from Erykah Badu's and Prince's favorite Australian avant-R&B band.

— Andy Kellman

Shelby Lynne

I Can't Imagine

Concord / New Rounder / Universal

Country, Pop/Rock

The singer and songwriter returns to the mainstream music business on her rock solid debut for Rounder.

— Thom Jurek

Ciara

Jackie [Clean]

Epic

R&B

A stilted and occasionally bewildering mix of broadsides, ballads, and innocuous club tracks.

— Andy Kellman

Best Coast

California Nights

Harvest / Universal / Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

The band aims for the back of arenas with its slick and unabashedly '90s alt rock-influenced third album.

— Tim Sendra

Kamasi Washington

The Epic

Brainfeeder

Jazz

A massive, accessible, revelatory debut by the veteran L.A. saxophonist, his large band, strings, and a choir.

— Thom Jurek

Mac McCaughan

Non-Believers

Merge

Pop/Rock

After over a quarter century of releasing records with Superchunk and Portastatic, their nominal frontman steps out with a synth pop-flavored solo album.

— Tim Sendra

Van Hunt

The Fun Rises, the Fun Sets

Godless-Hotspot

R&B

Another distinctive, high-quality album from the sly and sincere soul/funk/rock fusionist.

— Andy Kellman

Django Django

Born Under Saturn

Ribbon Music / Ribbon Records

Pop/Rock

The singular-sounding, rhythm-heavy Scottish art pop quartet is unique as ever on this excellent sophomore outing.

— Timothy Monger

Jacco Gardner

Hypnophobia

Polyvinyl

Pop/Rock

Second album of intricate '60s psych revivalism from the Dutch perfectionist that's the equal of his debut, with a few interesting twists.

— Tim Sendra

Mikal Cronin

MCIII

Merge

Pop/Rock

Adding some dramatic scope to his sound (with strings, horns, and a side-long concept), the singer/songwriter goes big without going flat.

— Tim Sendra

Hans-Peter Lindstrøm / Emil Nikolaisen / Todd Rundgren

Runddans

Smalltown Supersound

Electronic

Transportive and dramatic 39-minute piece from the veteran rock maverick and his Norwegian space-disco/shoegaze collaborators.

— Andy Kellman

Chris Stapleton

Traveller

Decca

Country

Casually virtuosic debut from the neo-outlaw songwriter who penned hits for Kenny Chesney and Darius Rucker.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Ivan & Alyosha

It's All Just Pretend

Dualtone Music

Pop/Rock

More endearing, sunshiny melodies and harmonies from the Seattle quintet, who lean toward indie pop after balancing folk on their debut.

— Marcy Donelson

The Word

Soul Food

Vanguard

Blues

Fourteen years after its debut, this supergroup makes a triumphant return with gospel wedded to rock, blues, boogie, and more.

— Thom Jurek

Death and Vanilla

To Where the Wild Things Are

Fire Records

Pop/Rock

The Swedish duo's second album is well-crafted and expansive, full of swirling keys, hypnotic female vocals, and soundtracky charm.

— Tim Sendra

Tech N9ne

Special Effects

Strange Music

Rap

Featuring everyone from Lil Wayne to Slipknot's Corey Taylor, the underground rapper's 2015 LP offers plenty of highlights.

— David Jeffries

Penguin Prison

Lost in New York

Downtown Records

Pop/Rock

The hooky and high-sheen sophomore album of Chris Glover's resurrected synth pop evokes 1983 on the dancefloor.

— Marcy Donelson

METZ

II

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

Smart and furiously powerful, the second album from this Canadian trio is a brutal but effective assault of sound.

— Mark Deming

Michael Rault

Living Daylight

Burger Records

Pop/Rock

Rollicking garage rock, swaggering T.Rex pastiches, late-night soul ballads and more from the Toronto-based rocker.

— Tim Sendra

Oddisee

The Good Fight

Mello Music Group

Rap

Inspired, infectious, and heavy, the underground rapper's tenth album is an excellent blast of retro soul and social commentary.

— David Jeffries

A Grave with No Name

Feathers Wet, Under the Moon

Lefse Records

Pop/Rock

Collaborating with Lambchop's Mark Nevers, Alex Shields' project trades lo-fi shoegaze for bittersweet twang.

— Heather Phares

Knxwledge

Hud Dreems

Stones Throw

Rap

The underground producer makes his beat tape debut the same year he lands a production on the landmark To Pimp a Butterfly.

— David Jeffries

Nosaj Thing

Fated

Innovative Leisure / Timetable

Electronic

Shadowy sketches from L.A. beat producer Jason Chung, including a nightmarish detox scene made with Chance the Rapper.

— Andy Kellman

RJD2 / STS

STS × RJD2

RJ's Electrical Connections

Rap

Up-and-coming rapper makes his debut with the veteran producer and the listener is the winner.

— David Jeffries

Superheaven

Ours Is Chrome

SideOneDummy

Pop/Rock

The Keystone State grunge trio delivers a sonically dense 11-track set that's as visceral as it is derivative.

— James Christopher Monger

Other Lives

Rituals

Play It Again Sam

Pop/Rock

Another fine collection of Radiohead and Alt-J-inspired, widescreen cinematic pop from the Oklahoma-based outfit.

— James Christopher Monger

Palma Violets

Danger in the Club

Rough Trade

Pop/Rock

Working with producer John Leckie, the band explores more sophisticated ways of expressing its shambling garage punk.

— Heather Phares

Downtown Boys

Full Communism

Don Giovanni

Pop/Rock

Sax-enriched punk rock band cooks with righteous rage and inspiring joy on their first full album.

— Mark Deming

Giant Sand

Heartbreak Pass

New West

Pop/Rock

Intelligent, charming, ambitious album from Howe Gelb's long-running band about the turbulent life of a touring musician.

— Mark Deming

Grace Jones

Disco

Island

R&B

Her first three albums, all recorded at Philly's Sigma Sound with Tom Moulton, brought back to rich, physical life.

— Andy Kellman

Half Japanese

Volume Three: 1990-1995

Fire Records

Pop/Rock

Three fine early- to mid-'90s albums from Jad Fair's continuing experiment in spontaneous self-expression.

— Mark Deming

Mandolin Orange

Such Jubilee

Yep Roc

Country, Pop/Rock

Homespun American Roots music built around the age-old foundation of heartfelt lyrics, sweet harmonies, and gentle strumming and picking.

— James Christopher Monger

Super Furry Animals

MWNG [Bonus Tracks]

Domino

Pop/Rock

On this outing, lead vocalist and guitarist Gruff Rhys did away with the band's overly ambitious, synthesizer-laden production.

— Maggie Serota

King Tuff / Ty Segall

Live at Pickathon

Easy Sound Recording Company

Pop/Rock

Two heroes of the contemporary garage-psych scene give it up for their fans at the 2013 edition of the Oregon music festival.

— Mark Deming

Rose Windows

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

Stripped-down second album from Seattle-based psych-rock explorers Rose Windows.

— Paul Simpson

Marshmallow Coast

Vangelis Rides Again

Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records

Pop/Rock

Andy Gonzales returns with a deep, though short, LP of psyched-out pop grooves that evokes the late-night hours.

— Timothy Monger

Jackie DeShannon

All the Love: The Lost Atlantic Recordings

Real Gone Music

Pop/Rock

Anthology of DeShannon's previously unreleased 1973 Atlantic sessions that includes collaborations with Van Morrison.

— Matt Collar

John McCullagh / John McCullagh & the Escorts

New Born Cry

359 Music

Pop/Rock

The youthful British folkie's robust, rock-oriented sophomore album features production from Cast's John Power.

— Matt Collar

Billy Ward / Billy Ward & the Dominoes

The Complete Federal/King Singles

Real Gone Music

Pop/Rock, R&B

All the A- and B-sides of the singles the trailblazing vocal R&B group released in the '50s and '60s.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Boney James

Futuresoul

Concord / Concord Records (Canada)

Jazz

Grammy-winning pop-jazz saxophonist skillfully blends the analog sounds of retro smooth jazz to digital adult R&B.

— Thom Jurek

Charlie Rich

So Lonesome I Could Cry

Fat Possum Records / Hi Records

Country

Retitled reissue of 1967's Charlie Rich Sings Country and Western, which is a collection of 12 Hank Williams covers.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Coliseum

Anxiety's Kiss

Deathwish

Pop/Rock

The Louisville power punk trio offer a captivating blend of muscular post-punk, socio-political hardcore, and streamlined alt rock on their excellent fifth LP.

— Timothy Monger

The Proclaimers

Let's Hear It for the Dogs [Bonus Track]

Compass

Pop/Rock

Reliably strong, down-to-earth, '50s- and '60s-influenced melodic songwriting and trademark brotherly harmonies from the Reid brothers.

— Marcy Donelson

Twinsmith

Alligator Years

Saddle Creek Records

Pop/Rock

Nebraskan quartet mixes bouncy, post-Vampire Weekend indie pop with hazy, Midwestern surf vibes on their Saddle Creek debut.

— Timothy Monger

Myung-Whun Chung / Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra

Mahler: Symphony No. 9

Deutsche Grammophon

Classical

Myung-Whun Chung leads the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra in a revelatory performance of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 9 in D major.

— Blair Sanderson

Matthew Owens / Wells Cathedral Choir

Bob Chilcott: St. John Passion

Signum Classics

Classical

This St. John Passion by Chilcott is well thought out and original. Very strongly recommended.

— James Manheim

Daniel Müller-Schott / Francesco Piemontesi

Britten, Prokofiev, Shostakovich: The Cello Sonatas

Orfeo

Classical

The biggest strength here, apart from Müller-Schott's muscular yet lyrical tone, is the choice of program. A thoroughly satisfying cello recital.

— James Manheim

Stewart Goodyear / Heiko Mathias Förster / Czech National Symphony Orchestra

Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos 2 & 3

Steinway & Sons

Classical

Stewart Goodyear's second release for Steinway & Sons covers familiar ground with Rachmaninov's Second and Third piano concertos.

— Blair Sanderson

Pavol Breslik / Amir Katz

Schubert: Die schöne Müllerin

Orfeo

Classical

Tenor Breslik's reading of Schubert's song cycle Die schöne Müllerin, where he has no shortage of competition, can only make his reputation grow.

— James Manheim

Marc-André Hamelin / Takács Quartet

Shostakovich: Piano Quintet; String Quartet No. 2

Hyperion

Classical

The Takács Quartet is gripping throughout. Highly recommended, evocative early Shostakovich, with excellent sound from England's Wyastone Estate concert hall.

— James Manheim