Gwen Stefani

This Is What the Truth Feels Like

Interscope

Pop/Rock

Gwen Stefani takes stock of all of her life changes -- and some pop music trends -- on her first solo album in a decade.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Iggy Pop

Post Pop Depression

Concord Loma Vista / Loma Vista

Pop/Rock

The proto-punk icon teams up with Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age for a set of bold, intelligent rock & roll.

— Mark Deming

Jaheim

Struggle Love

BMG / Julie's Dream

R&B

More fine modern soul from the New Jersey native, featuring a handful of great ballads, some side-splitting lines, and a little dirty talk.

— Andy Kellman

Primal Scream

Chaosmosis

1st International / Ignition Records

Pop/Rock

Primal Scream inadvertently concentrates on electronic textures and rhythms on Chaosmosis.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

iLoveMakonnen

Drink More Water 6

Parlophone / Warner Bros. / Warner Records

Rap

A wild and whimsical mixtape with a wider appeal than the usual sideline release.

— David Jeffries

Various Artists

Southern Family

Elektra / Low Country Sound

Country, Pop/Rock

Producer Dave Cobb's multi-artist mosaic portrays the rich complexities of modern Southern music.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Baauer

Aa

LuckyMe

Electronic

M.I.A., Future, and Pusha-T join the "Harlem Shake" producer as he proves he's much, much more than a one-hit wonder.

— David Jeffries

B Boys

No Worry No Mind

Captured Tracks

Pop/Rock

Tight, insistent, and occasionally menacing post-punk from this Brooklyn-based trio.

— Timothy Monger

Bitchin Bajas / Bonnie "Prince" Billy

Epic Jammers and Fortunate Little Ditties

Drag City

Pop/Rock

A trance-inducing set of bucolic folk emissions that pair elliptical melodies with Oldham riffing on fortune-cookie aphorisms.

— James Christopher Monger

Boris / Merzbow

Gensho

Relapse Records

Avant-Garde, Pop/Rock

Two veteran Japanese acts collaborate for the sixth time with a different aesthetic approach to deliver endless possibilities for discovery.

— Thom Jurek

Clark

The Last Panthers

Warp

Electronic, Stage & Screen

The versatile electronic producer expands his sound with this soundtrack to a six-part crime drama mini-series.

— Paul Simpson

Cullen Omori

New Misery

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

Clever and emotionally compelling indie pop from the former frontman with the Smith Westerns.

— Mark Deming

Daddy

Let Me Get What I Want

Kobalt / We Are Daddy

Pop/Rock

The Smiths-inspired debut long-player from actor James Franco and multi-instrumentalist Tim O'Keefe.

— James Christopher Monger

Damien Jurado

Visions of Us on the Land

Secretly Canadian

Pop/Rock

The songwriter reteams with producer Richard Swift for his 12th LP, an intense, trippy final installment of the unplanned Maraqopa Trilogy.

— Marcy Donelson

Dog Chocolate

Snack Fans

Upset the Rhythm

Pop/Rock

The London noise-punk outfit's nervy debut attempts to find that sweet spot between twenty-something angst and childlike wonder.

— James Christopher Monger

The Drones

Feelin Kinda Free

MGM / TFS

Pop/Rock

For their seventh outing, the mercurial Aussie rockers offer up their weirdest and most visceral set to date.

— James Christopher Monger

Glenn Jones

Fleeting

Thrill Jockey

Folk, Pop/Rock

Sixth solo full-length from the master neo-traditional folk guitarist, recorded at a creekside house in New Jersey.

— Paul Simpson

Fatima Al Qadiri

Brute

Hyperdub

Electronic

The producer's second Hyperdub album laces menacing ambient grime with the sounds of militarized police aggression and related media coverage.

— Andy Kellman

Grant-Lee Phillips

The Narrows

Yep Roc

Pop/Rock

Relocating to Tennessee prompts the singer/songwriter to record an engaging and evocative album about California life.

— Mark Deming

Gun Outfit

Two Way Player

Wharf Cat Records

Pop/Rock

The band further reinvents itself as a desert highway surrealist on this five-song EP.

— Timothy Monger

Hælos

Full Circle

Matador

Pop/Rock

The emotional cycle of love and loss are at the core of this gorgeous debut from the electronic London trio.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Haircut One Hundred

Pelican West [Deluxe Edition]

Cherry Pop

Pop/Rock

Expanded edition of the band's sophisticated pop classic, featuring the timeless "Love Plus One."

— Tim Sendra

James

Girl at the End of the World

BMG / Universal

Pop/Rock

The veteran U.K. pop outsiders deliver a robust, electronic-laced sound on their strong 14th effort.

— Timothy Monger

Levitation Room

Ethos

Burger Records

Pop/Rock

Debut album by note-perfect garage psych revivalists from L.A.

— Tim Sendra

Lifetones

For a Reason

Light in the Attic Records

Pop/Rock, Reggae

One-off dubby post-punk project of Charles Bullen, co-founder of influential U.K. experimental rock group This Heat.

Liima

ii

4AD

Pop/Rock

Playful, spontaneous collaboration between Danish indie electronic group Efterklang and Finnish jazz drummer Tatu Rönkkö.

— Paul Simpson

Lust for Youth

Compassion

Sacred Bones

Pop/Rock

The band follows International's breakthrough with an even more vulnerable -- and rewarding -- set of songs.

— Heather Phares

Masami Akita / Eiko Ishibashi

Kouen Kyoudai [LP]

Editions Mego

Avant-Garde, Electronic

A wonderful, sprawling collaboration between the power electronics master and a younger composer and multi-instrumentalist.

— Thom Jurek

Meilyr Jones

2013

Moshi Moshi Records / PIAS

Pop/Rock

The former Race Horses leader goes solo with poignant chamber pop that simmers with wry humor and musical whimsy.

— Marcy Donelson

Modular

Fuga al Paraiso

Elefant

Pop/Rock

On their third album, Argentinian indie pop band Modular tweak their space age pop sound and give it a glitterball-friendly update.

— Tim Sendra

Public Memory

Wuthering Drum

Felte

Electronic, Pop/Rock

The former ERAAS frontman delivers mysterious electronic pop that teeters between ominous and hopeful.

— Heather Phares

Ray Columbus

Now You Shake: The Definitive R&B-Pop Psych Recordings 1963-1969

Frenzy / RPM

Pop/Rock

29-track sampler of the '60s recordings from one of the pivotal figures on the New Zealand rock scene.

— Mark Deming

Redfoo

Party Rock Mansion

Party Rock / Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

The party doesn't stop as the LMFAO member goes solo with worthy tracks like "Party Train" and "Juicy Wiggle."

— David Jeffries

Russell Malone

All About Melody

HighNote Records

Jazz

The guitarist's second Highnote effort finds him balancing his love of sophisticated, straight-ahead jazz and soulful groove music.

— Matt Collar

Sean Watkins

What to Fear

Single Lock Records / Thirty Tigers

Pop/Rock

A hushed, haunting, and quietly affecting protest album as personal as it is political.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Solar Bears

Advancement

Sunday Best

Electronic, Pop/Rock

On their third album, the cinematic Irish electronic duo switch labels and create their most focused work yet.

— Paul Simpson

Soul Asylum

Change of Fortune

eOne

Pop/Rock

The 11th album from the long-running and influential Minneapolis band (and first since founding guitarist Dan Murphy left the group).

— Mark Deming

Stepdad

Masterbeast Theatre

Quite Scientific

Pop/Rock

After being robbed of an album's worth of material, the Grand Rapids, Michigan band managed to save four electronic pop gems for this EP.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Tanita Tikaram

Closer to the People

Ear Music

Pop/Rock

A hushed, intimate collection that spotlights the soulful, jazzy inclinations of the singer/songwriter's road band.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

The Body

No One Deserves Happiness

Thrill Jockey

Pop/Rock

The Portland-based doom metal duo successfully incorporate hip-hop and dance elements into their sludgy, punishing sound.

— Paul Simpson

The Bonnevilles

Arrow Pierce My Heart

Alive / Alive Naturalsound Records

Pop/Rock

Irish duo delivers raw and moody, punk-infused blues on this strong third studio effort.

— Mark Deming

The Goon Sax

Up to Anything

Chapter / Chapter Music

Pop/Rock

Impressive debut for the simple but off-kilter teenage indie pop trio from Brisbane, Australia.

— Tim Sendra

Magnetic North

Prospect of Skelmersdale

Full Time Hobby

Pop/Rock, Folk

A gorgeous chamber pop pastiche of musical snapshots inspired by one of Britain's post-war New Towns.

— Timothy Monger

Underworld

Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future

Astralwerks

Electronic

A near-perfect album from the veteran electronica artist, co-produced with the group High Contrast.

— David Jeffries

Various Artists

Wayfaring Strangers: Cosmic American Music

Numero Group

Country, Pop/Rock

Wonderful excavation of obscure, spacey country-rock made for indies and private presses during the '70s.

Walker Family Singers

Panola County Spirit

Daptone

Religious

Michael Reilly went to Como, Mississippi for Daptone and captured the soul-stirring sound of its first family of gospel at home.

— Thom Jurek

Rodolfus Choir / Ralph Allwood

Time and its Passing

Signum Classics

Classical

The bright, rich sound of the Rodolfus Choir ties together this program with a hypnotic musical line.

— James Manheim

Alexei Lubimov / Slava Poprugin

Stravinsky / Satie: Paris Joyeux & Triste - Piano Duets

Alpha

Classical

Works by Stravinsky and Satie are played by Alexei Lubimov and Slava Poprugin in transcriptions for two pianos.

— Blair Sanderson

Doric String Quartet

Haydn: String Quartets, Op. 76

Chandos

Classical

A superior, daring Haydn quartet release in a field where there's a great deal of competition.

— James Manheim

Grigory Sokolov

Schubert, Beethoven

Deutsche Grammophon

Classical

Grigory Sokolov's 2013 recitals in Warsaw and Salzburg are combined in this double CD from Deutsche Grammophon.

— Blair Sanderson

Tenebrae / Nigel Short

Sun, Moon, Sea and Stars: Songs and Arrangements by Bob Chilcott

Bene Arte / Signum Classics

Classical

The Tenebrae Consort and its director, Nigel Short, let the music's simplicity and beauty come through.

— James Manheim

Louis Lortie / Truls Mørk / Neeme Järvi / Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra

Saint-Saëns: Cello Concertos Nos. 1 and 2; The Carnival of the Animals; Africa; Wedding-cake

Chandos

Classical

The central threads here are the conducting of Neeme Järvi and the light, graceful work of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra.

— James Manheim

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