The Monkees

Good Times!

Rhino / Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

An exceptional reunion album that's a love letter to everything that made the Monkees great.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Beth Orton

Kidsticks

Anti-

Pop/Rock

Working with co-producer Andrew Hung, the British singer/songwriter re-embraces technology in a bold new way.

— Thom Jurek

Robert Glasper

Everything's Beautiful

Legacy

R&B

Keyboardist/producer Glasper and a large supporting cast create new material using disparate elements from Davis' Columbia multi-track recordings.

— Andy Kellman

Dierks Bentley

Black

Capitol / Capitol Nashville

Country

Slick, sultry collection of mature mood music from the country singer.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

ABC

The Lexicon of Love II

Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

Thirty-plus years later, Martin Fry (and original collaborator Anne Dudley) make a worthy sequel to the band's landmark 1982 album, The Lexicon of Love.

— Tim Sendra

Dâm-Funk

DJ-Kicks

!K7

R&B

As his L.A. club night Funkmosphere approaches its tenth year, Damon Riddick spins a pleasingly kicked-back set of mostly obscure modern funk.

— Andy Kellman

Holy Fuck

Congrats

Innovative Leisure

Pop/Rock

The Toronto-based electro-rock group refine their junk store aesthetic into their most accessible songs yet on their fourth album.

— Paul Simpson

JC Flowers

Driving Excitement and the Pleasure of Ownership

ATP / ATP Recordings

Pop/Rock

Excellent debut from the London sextet sounding like a lo-fi Free Design brought up on noisy, C-86-style indie pop.

— Tim Sendra

Kristin Kontrol

X-Communicate

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

Leaving the Dum Dum Girls behind, Dee Dee changed her name and moved to an '80s/'90s pop-influenced, synth-heavy sound.

— Tim Sendra

Flume

Skin

Mom + Pop Music

Electronic, Pop/Rock

With the help of some well-chosen -- and similarly genre-hopping -- collaborators, the producer delivers a more mature and memorable second album.

— Heather Phares

Sonny & the Sunsets

Moods Baby Moods

Polyvinyl

Pop/Rock

Braced by production from tUnE-yArDs' Merrill Garbus, the band's vibrant sixth LP draws inspiration from '80s new wave and funk.

— Marcy Donelson

Glenn Astro / Max Graef

The Yard Work Simulator

Ninja Tune

Electronic

Gleeful album of messy beats and jazzy keyboards from two Berlin-based producers who defy house music's conventions.

— Paul Simpson

Big Thief

Masterpiece

Saddle Creek Records

Pop/Rock

The quartet's intense debut has former solo singer/songwriter Adrianne Lenker thriving in a band setting.

— Marcy Donelson

PUP

The Dream Is Over

SideOneDummy

Pop/Rock

Amid their ramshackle bombast, the Canadian punks flash some strong musical chops on their sophomore outing.

— Timothy Monger

Fifth Harmony

7/27

Epic

Pop/Rock

The sophomore album from the former X Factor competitors finds the R&B outfit moving in a mature, sophisticated direction.

— Matt Collar

Lacuna Coil

Delirium

Century Media / Sony Music

Pop/Rock

Visceral and divine, this eighth album from the Italian goth metal vets excites and breathes life into their catalog.

— Neil Z. Yeung

50 Foot Wave

Bath White

Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records

Pop/Rock

Kristin Hersh's post-Throwing Muses trio deliver another exhilarating rush on their first EP for Happy Happy Birthday to Me.

— Paul Simpson

Melanie De Biasio

Blackened Cities

Le Label

Jazz

The singer follows No Deal with a breathtaking, epic-length single track of ambitious nocturnal jazz and atmospheric grooves.

— Thom Jurek

Architects

All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us

Epitaph

Pop/Rock

An icy blast of politically charged apocalypse theater delivered by a band surveying the ruins below from their creative peak.

— James Christopher Monger

Summer Cannibals

Full of It

Kill Rock Stars

Pop/Rock

The Portland rockers step up their game on their riffy, muscular debut for Kill Rock Stars.

— Timothy Monger

Catfish and the Bottlemen

The Ride

Capitol

Pop/Rock

On their second album, the Welsh rockers hone their hooks without diminishing their Y2K rock influences.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Ro James

Eldorado

RCA

R&B

Promising debut from a modern, soul-rooted R&B singer whose label is rightfully confident enough to refrain from guest rapper recruitment.

— Andy Kellman

Billy Childish / CTMF / Wild Billy Childish & CTMF

SQ1

Damaged Goods / Forced Exposure

Pop/Rock

The U.K. garage rock hero and his bandmates look at their past and the creative ideal while laying out powerful three-chord rock & roll.

— Mark Deming

Daniel Romano

Mosey

New West

Pop/Rock

Canadian singer and songwriter jumps from retro country to radio-ready '60s- and '70s-style pop and rock.

— Mark Deming

Gold Panda

Good Luck and Do Your Best

City Slang

Electronic, Pop/Rock, Rap

The U.K. producer's third full-length is warm, wistful, sample-based electronic music equally informed by house and hip-hop.

— Paul Simpson

Highasakite

Camp Echo

Propeller Records

Pop/Rock

The Norwegian pop eccentrics play dark themes against bright, shimmering synth-pop on their sophomore LP.

— Timothy Monger

Jigmastas

Resurgence

!K7 / BBE

Rap

The long-lost and revered hip-hop duo return with a set of stray tracks, but it's a stronger set than the usual stopgap release.

— David Jeffries

Vivien Goldman

Resolutionary

Staubgold

Pop/Rock, Reggae

Compilation of late-'70s and early-'80s recordings by writer and educator Vivien Goldman, blending post-punk with dub and Afro-pop rhythms.

— Paul Simpson

Bob Marley & the Wailers / The Soul Brothers / The Wailing Wailers

The Wailing Wailers

Studio One

Reggae

First album from Jamaica's most legendary group is a scrappy but joyous fusion of ska, rocksteady, and American R&B.

— Mark Deming

Tony Joe White

Rain Crow

Yep Roc

Pop/Rock

Legendary swamp rocker shows his age and makes it work for him on this set of sinewy late-night grooves.

— Mark Deming

Ultimate Painting

Live at Third Man Records

Third Man Records

Pop/Rock

Loose and energetic live set recorded at Third Man Records on the band's 2015 tour.

— Tim Sendra

Magic Potion

Pink Gum

Unit

Pop/Rock

The Swedish quartet's debut album is a charmingly weird, unassuming slice of indie pop.

— Tim Sendra

Mark Kozelek

Sings Favorites

Caldo Verde Records

Pop/Rock

Mark Kozelek takes a break from his increasingly autobiographical Sun Kil Moon albums for a set of stripped-down covers.

— Paul Simpson

Of Mice & Men

Live at Brixton

Reprise / Rise Records

Pop/Rock

Recorded in London on their Full Circle tour, this explosive collection documents their live show with a set list that highlights their third album, Restoring Force.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Outer Spaces

A Shedding Snake

Don Giovanni

Pop/Rock

Full of pretty guitars and well-crafted tunes, singer and songwriter Cara Beth Satacino cited Murmur-era R.E.M as an influence on this debut LP.

— Marcy Donelson

Yumi Zouma

Yoncalla

Cascine

Pop/Rock

Relaxing, smoothly sculpted electro-pop from a fresh-faced New Zealand quartet.

— Tim Sendra

The Pop Group

The Boys Whose Head Exploded

Freaks R Us

Pop/Rock

Archival collection of live recordings from the group's first era; smart, confrontational, fearless.

— Mark Deming

The Units

Animals They Dream About

Futurismo

Pop/Rock

Produced by Be Bop Deluxe's Bill Nelson, the band's long-lost second album is a fascinating, subversively paranoid new wave artifact.

— Heather Phares

Various Artists

A Tribute to Pet Sounds

Reverberation Appreciation Society

Pop/Rock

Homage to Brian Wilson's pop masterpiece casts the songs in a darker, moodier hue, with results that are uneven at best.

— Mark Deming

Klara Lewis

Too

Editions Mego

Electronic

The producer's second album of grayscale ambient productions features a little more definition than her debut.

— Andy Kellman

Silkroad Ensemble / Yo-Yo Ma

Sing Me Home

Masterworks

Classical

This album gives insights into the musical and personal depth of the Silk Road players.

— James Manheim

Xiayin Wang / Peter Oundjian

Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 2; Khachaturian: Piano Concerto

Chandos

Classical

The original version of Tchaikovsky's Second Piano Concerto is paired with Khachaturian's dynamic Piano Concerto in Xiayin Wang's 2016 Chandos release.

— Blair Sanderson

Andrew Manze / Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra

Vaughan Williams: A London Symphony; Symphony No. 8

Onyx / Onyx Classics

Classical

Andrew Manze and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic perform Vaughan Williams "A London Symphony" and the Symphony No. 8 with warmth and enthusiasm.

— Blair Sanderson

Quatuor Ébène / Gautier Capuçon / Matthias Goerne

Schubert: String Quintet; Lieder

Erato

Classical

Quatuor Ebène is joined by cellist Gautier Capuçon, double bassist Laurène Durantel, and baritone Matthias Goerne in this all-Schubert program.

— Blair Sanderson

Quartetto di Cremona / Lawrence Dutton

Beethoven: Complete String Quartets, Vol. 5

Audite

Classical

Volume 5 of the Quartetto di Cremona's Beethoven series offers the String Quintet in C major and the late String Quartet in A minor.

— Blair Sanderson

The Cardinall's Musick / Andrew Carwood

Tallis: Lamentations and Other Sacred Music

Hyperion

Classical

The Lamentations of Jeremiah and other choral works by Thomas Tallis are powerfully performed by The Cardinall's Musick.

— James Manheim

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