Grace Potter

Midnight

Hollywood

Pop/Rock

Assisted by L.A. producer Eric Valentine, roots rocker Grace Potter dives into big '80s AOR on the clever, candied Midnight.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Bullet for My Valentine

Venom

RCA

Pop/Rock

A visceral mix of taut, dueling guitar-monies, old school thrash propulsion, and choruses that burrow into your eardrums and lays eggs.

— James Christopher Monger

The Muffs

The Muffs

Omnivore

Pop/Rock

Reissue of the fine debut from Kim Shattuck's pop-punk celebrants adds eight unheard demos and alternate versions of two tunes.

— Mark Deming

Rayland Baxter

Imaginary Man

ATO

Pop/Rock

Swampy but sophisticated sounds from the Tennessee singer and songwriter as he spins evocative tales of love and life.

— Mark Deming

Pavement

The Secret History, Vol. 1

Matador

Pop/Rock

Vinyl-only collection of the rarities from the 2002 Luxe & Reduxe reissue of Slanted & Enchanted.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Irvin Mayfield / Dee Dee Bridgewater / New Orleans Jazz Orchestra

Dee Dee's Feathers

Masterworks / OKeh Records

Jazz

An earthy, rollicking tribute to New Orleans featuring vocalist Bridgewater and trumpeter Irvin Mayfield.

— Matt Collar

The Good Life

Everybody's Coming Down

Saddle Creek Records

Pop/Rock

A mercurial, '90s alt-rock-infused set that marks another new turn for Tim Kasher's combo, now writing as a full band.

— Marcy Donelson

Slime

Company

Weird World

Electronic

The producer's excellent debut is somewhere between left-field hip-hop and old school trip-hop.

— David Jeffries

Sweet Baboo

The Boombox Ballads

Moshi Moshi Records

Pop/Rock

A smile-inducing collection of quirky, retro-tinged ditties -- not all ballads but all love songs -- from the Welsh indie singer/songwriter.

— Marcy Donelson

The Waifs

Beautiful You

Compass / Compass Records

Pop/Rock, Folk

The Australian roots act's seventh studio LP find them in a more balanced and unified place.

— Timothy Monger

Dillon Francis

This Mixtape Is Fire

Columbia

Electronic

Trap, moombahton, and even funk figure into the mix of this surprisingly tasteful EP from the producer/prankster.

— David Jeffries

Britta Phillips / Dean Wareham

Mistress America [Original Soundtrack]

Milan

Pop/Rock, Stage & Screen

A dreamy, evocative, '80s synth pop-style soundtrack from Luna's Dean Wareham and Britta Phillip.

— Matt Collar

Finale

Odds & Ends

Mello Music Group

Rap

After six years off tending to a family and a "normal job," the Detroit rapper makes a triumphant return with Oddisee as his producer.

— David Jeffries

Neck Deep

Life's Not Out to Get You

Hopeless Records

Pop/Rock

The Welsh pop punks go for a big, polished sound on their sophomore LP.

— Timothy Monger

Jock Scot

My Personal Culloden

Forever Heavenly

Comedy/Spoken, Avant-Garde, Pop/Rock

The maverick Scottish punk poet's 1997 album debut is an experimental rock travelogue through its author's id, ego, history, and hometown of Edinburgh.

— Timothy Monger

Howard Griffiths / Brandenburgisches Staatsorchester Frankfurt

Brahms: Symphonies 1 & 2

Klanglogo

Classical

Howard Griffiths presents the first two symphonies of Johannes Brahms in their original versions, performed according to period practices.

— Blair Sanderson

Opera Holland Park

Will Todd: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Signum Classics

Classical

This adaptation by Todd and Gottlieb is worth the attention of anyone intrigued by the problem of opera for families.

— James Manheim

Ariel Abramovich / Anna Maria Friman / Jacob Heringman / John Potter

Amores Pasados

ECM

Classical

This seems a strange concept, but it works very well for several reasons, including the singing of Potter and Friman, who strike just the right note.

— James Manheim

Ernst Breidenbach / Jan Hennig

Sigfrid Karg-Elert: Opern von Richard Wagner in Bearbeitungen für Harmonium und Klavier

Pan Classics

Classical

Sigfrid Karg-Elert arranged music by Richard Wagner for harmonium and piano, which Jan Hennig and Ernst Breidenbach explore on this 2015 release.

— Blair Sanderson

Gryphon Trio / Julie Nesrallah

Elements Eternal

Naxos

Classical

This enjoyable group of contemporary Canadian chamber pieces gives exposure to a quartet of composers largely unknown outside the Great White North.

— James Manheim

Augustin Hadelich / Miguel Harth-Bedoya / Norwegian Radio Orchestra

Bartók: Violin Concerto No. 2; Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto

Avie

Classical

Hadelich is well supported by Harth Bedoya and the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, who obviously took the time to figure out what the soloist was doing.

— James Manheim

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