The Weeknd

Beauty Behind the Madness

Republic

R&B

Abel Tesfaye's star-filled, drug-addled second proper LP is led by three sonically dissimilar singles that reached the Top Ten prior to its release.

— Andy Kellman

Destroyer

Poison Season

Merge

Pop/Rock

A cohesive, intensely wistful, strings- and horns-washed epic exploration of New York city life from the bewildering Dan Bejar.

— Marcy Donelson

Beach House

Depression Cherry

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

Combining Bloom's sophistication with the simplicity of their debut, the duo's fifth album demands and rewards close listening.

— Heather Phares

Yo La Tengo

Stuff Like That There

Matador

Pop/Rock

A sequel of sorts to Fakebook, with the band playing a set of new tunes, covers, and remakes, with guest guitarist Dave Schramm.

— Mark Deming

Jimi Hendrix / The Jimi Hendrix Experience

Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festival 1970

Legacy / Sony Music

Pop/Rock

The revamped Experience turned in an exciting show at the Atlanta Pop Festival, and with "Hear My Train," Jimi turned in one of the greatest solos of his career.

— Sean Westergaard

Maddie & Tae

Start Here

Dot

Country

Smart and sentimental, bright and lively, the debut from Maddie & Tae is a fresh, dynamic debut that captures the sound of modern country in 2015.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Andra Day

Cheers to the Fall

Warner Bros.

R&B

Impressive ballad-heavy set of retro-soul made in collaboration with the likes of Adrian Gurvitz and Raphael Saadiq.

— Andy Kellman

Atlas Genius

Inanimate Objects

Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

The Aussie duo offer up a sunny and synth-driven collection of Killers and Imagine Dragons-esque stadium anthems.

— James Christopher Monger

Faces

You Can Make Me Dance, Sing or Anything: 1970-1975

Rhino / Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

A box set containing expanded editions of the four Faces albums, including a bunch of rarities not found on the Five Guys Walk into a Bar... box.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Foals

What Went Down

Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

Yannis Philippakis pushes his voice harder than ever before on the persistently driving follow-up to Holy Fire.

— Marcy Donelson

Tamaryn

Cranekiss

Mexican Summer

Pop/Rock

Featuring members of Weekend and Violens, Tamaryn's third album is an arresting blend of the best dream pop and Top 40 singles of the late '80s and early '90s.

— Heather Phares

Ruby Amanfu

Standing Still

Arrival

Pop/Rock

The versatile Nashville-based singer/songwriter beautifully melds smoky soul, jazz, country, and pop on her slow-burning third LP.

— Timothy Monger

Frog Eyes

Pickpocket's Locket

Paper Bag Records

Pop/Rock

Eighth album from the Canadian indie rockers sounds less aggressive, but just as emotionally powerful.

— Mark Deming

Holly Golightly

Slowtown Now!

Damaged Goods

Pop/Rock

The Medway chanteuse takes a sabbatical from the Brokeoffs and cuts a solo comeback of kitchen-sink torch songs.

— Mark Deming

Willis Earl Beal

Noctunes

Tender Loving Empire

Pop/Rock

This meditation on the breakup of a marriage is the artist's most restrained yet emotionally complex recording.

— Thom Jurek

Motörhead

Bad Magic

UDR

Pop/Rock

After a bout with ill health, Lemmy rallies his troops and returns to the studio, bloody but unbowed, and as loud as ever.

— Mark Deming

All Dogs

Kicking Every Day

Salinas Records

Pop/Rock

'90s-inspired guitar pop from an Ohio quartet led by the expressive vocals and insightful songs of Maryn Jones.

— Tim Sendra

Hooton Tennis Club

Highest Point in Cliff Town

Heavenly

Pop/Rock

Light and lazy shamble pop debut from a band who certainly own every Pavement recording ever made.

— Tim Sendra

Mike Krol

Turkey

Merge

Pop/Rock

Rough-and-ready third album, and first for Merge, from the L.A. garage punker with a chip on his shoulder.

— Tim Sendra

Silicon

Personal Computer

Weird World

Electronic, Pop/Rock

The debut by Mint Chicks and Opossom frontman Kody Nielson is full of lonesome, retro-futurist electronic soul.

— Timothy Monger

Grandchildren

Zuni

Ernest Jenning

Pop/Rock

An infectious combo of pensive, doubting lyrics and a percussive, shimmering wall of warm and sunny musicality.

— Marcy Donelson

Halsey

Badlands

Astralwerks

Pop/Rock

'90s electronica, goth rock, and hip-hop inform this moody, icy debut from the New Jersey-born singer.

— Matt Collar

Defeater

Abandoned

Epitaph

Pop/Rock

The Boston hardcore group continues with their ongoing conceptual narrative on their heavy debut for Epitaph.

— Timothy Monger

Dope Body

Kunk

Drag City

Pop/Rock

Prime leftover jams from the Lifer sessions were slightly reworked in order to create another twisted album.

— Thom Jurek

Static Daydream

Static Daydream

Saint Marie

Pop/Rock

Debut album from a duo fronted by noise pop lifer Paul Baker, formerly of the underappreciated bands Skywave and Ceremony.

— Paul Simpson

The Jet Age

Destroy. Rebuild

Pop/Rock

The D.C. indie power trio's sixth LP shows the band in fine, noisy form with plenty of socio-political undertones.

— Timothy Monger

Tijuana Panthers

Poster

Innovative Leisure

Pop/Rock

Surf-influenced indie punks take some ambitious stylistic steps forward on their fourth album.

— Mark Deming

Bitchin Bajas / Natural Information Society

Automaginary

Drag City

Pop/Rock, Electronic, Jazz

Fluid collaboration between two Chicago-based ensembles, blending hypnotic jazz with cosmic minimalism.

— Paul Simpson

Crazy Town

The Brimstone Sluggers

Membran / RED Music Solutions

Pop/Rock

The first collection of new music from the rap-rock/nu-metal crew in over a decade.

— James Christopher Monger

Steep Canyon Rangers

Radio

Rounder

Country

Talented and youthful bluegrass upstarts add a percussionist and let their pop, country, and traditional influences mingle.

— Mark Deming

Simone Young / Philharmoniker Hamburg

Bruckner: Sinfonie Nr. 5

Oehms Classics

Classical

Simone Young's recording of Bruckner's Fifth brings to a close her live audiophile cycle of the symphonies on Oehms Classics.

— Blair Sanderson

Michael Tilson Thomas / John Adams / San Francisco Symphony

John Adams: Absolute Jest; Grand Pianola Music

SFS / SFS Media

Classical

A great deal of fun, enthusiastically received by the Davies Symphony Hall audiences in these live 2013 recordings.

— James Manheim

Die Singphoniker

Georg Kreisler

Oehms Classics

Classical

Die Singphoniker does an impressive job catching both the humor and considerable subtlety of Kreisler's musical language.

— James Manheim

Angela Hewitt

Beethoven: Piano Sonatas, Op. 2 No. 2, Op. 10 No. 1, Op. 78, Op. 110

Hyperion

Classical

It's hard to offer a general judgment on this set, but for those buying online, in pieces, know that the last two selections are must-haves.

— James Manheim

Julian Arp / Luís Magalhães / Priya Mitchell / Daniel Rowland

The Korngold Project Part 1

TwoPianists

Classical

The Korngold Project gets off to an auspicious start with performances of the Piano Trio (1909-1910) and the Suite (1930).

— Blair Sanderson

David Bowlin / David Holzman

Roger Sessions: Music for Violin & Piano

Bridge

Classical

Violinist David Bowlin and pianist David Holzman give passionate and moody performances of chamber works by American modernist Roger Sessions.

— Blair Sanderson

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