Maxwell

blackSUMMERS'night

Columbia

R&B

Seven years after the preceding release -- 20 years after the debut -- the Grammy winner delivers relatively raw yet sculpted modern soul.

— Andy Kellman

blink-182

California

BMG

Pop/Rock

Both a return to form and an enjoyable maturation, the pop-punk godfathers return with a new guitarist on their best effort in 15 years.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Bat for Lashes

The Bride

Parlophone / Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

The project's fourth album traces a bereaved bride's journey through love, horror, grief, and healing.

— Heather Phares

Magic!

Primary Colours

RCA

Pop/Rock

The band's second album proves they've got ultra-summery reggae-pop down to a science.

— Heather Phares

Sara Watkins

Young in All the Wrong Ways

New West

Pop/Rock, Country

Concise and rich collection that finds Watkins emphasizing mature rock over Americana.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

GØGGS

GØGGS

In the Red Records

Pop/Rock

Featuring the wildly prolific Ty Segall, this album is full of corrosive punk energy, leavened with wild noise and heaviness.

— Mark Deming

KATIEE

Out All Night

Pop/Rock

The former Young People singer's solo debut is a stunning blend of old and new, and sophistication and emotion.

— Heather Phares

Thee Oh Sees

Live in San Francisco

Castle Face

Pop/Rock

This live set captures the gloriously scuzzy garage-psych band in full, wildly energetic flight as they run through a set of 2010s-released songs.

— Tim Sendra

TERRY

TERRY HQ

Upset the Rhythm

Pop/Rock

Sort of a dolewave supergroup with members of Dick Diver and Total Control on hand, their combined forces make for a low-key, indie rock delight.

— Tim Sendra

Anthony Joseph

Caribbean Roots

Heavenly Sweetness / Strut

Jazz, Pop/Rock

On his second solo date, the poet and his ensemble use the spectrum of Caribbean rhythm and bridge it to jazz-funk, Afro-beat, and soul.

— Thom Jurek

Colin "Bulby" York

Epic & Ting

VP Records

Reggae

The former Fat Eyes member and producer makes an exciting solo debut with Sizzla, Lee "Scratch" Perry, Beres Hammond, and many others.

— David Jeffries

? & the Mysterians

Action

Real Gone Music

Pop/Rock

Reissue of second album from the garage punk wunderkinds is more accomplished than the debut, but not so much that it hurts the music.

— Mark Deming

Chelsea Grin

Self Inflicted

Rise Records

Pop/Rock

As menacing and relentless as anything the Utah-based deathcore unit has dropped thus far, a rage-fueled beatdown that's as technically sound as it sonically punishing.

— James Christopher Monger

Eric Clapton

Crossroads Revisited: Selections From the Crossroads Guitar Festivals

Rhino / Warner Bros.

Blues, Pop/Rock

Triple-disc set of highlights from several years of Eric Clapton's guitar-laden Crossroads Festival.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Micky Dolenz / Davy Jones

Harry Nilsson's The Point [Original Cast Recording]

Varèse Sarabande

Stage & Screen, Pop/Rock

Lively cast recording from 1977 London production of Harry Nilsson's very personal work features his old friends Davy Jones and Micky Dolenz in major roles.

— Tim Sendra

Kate & Anna McGarrigle

Pronto Monto

Omnivore

Folk, Pop/Rock

The McGarrigles' long out-of-print third LP frames their offbeat charms in the detailed pop production gloss of the late '70s.

— Timothy Monger

Mala

Mirrors

Brownswood

Electronic

The dubstep originator follows his 2012 debut full-length Mala in Cuba with another soul-searching excursion, this time to Peru.

— Paul Simpson

ORB

Birth

Castle Face

Pop/Rock

Australian trio's debut album is an inspired salute to pre-metal heaviness.

— Mark Deming

Survivor

The Definitive Collection

Real Gone Music

Pop/Rock

Comprehensive double-disc set of Survivor's '70s and '80s recordings doesn't just concentrate on the hits.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

The Delfonics

40 Classic Soul Sides

Real Gone Music

R&B

All of the Philly soul group's major work for Philly Groove and Bell, 1968-1972, compiled in a sharply packaged two-disc set.

— Andy Kellman

Whitechapel

Mark of the Blade

Metal Blade

Pop/Rock

On this date, Tennessee metal outfit deliver a further evolution, offering something for everybody, including themselves.

— Thom Jurek

American Authors

What We Live For

Island / Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

The New York quartet sets their sights on the arena stage by infusing their brand of pastoral rock with OneRepublic-style pop polish.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Useless ID

State Is Burning

Fat Wreck Chords

Pop/Rock

Veteran Israeli punk band eases back a bit on their pop side and takes a harder look at the world around them.

— Mark Deming

Joshua Weilerstein / Lausanne Chamber Orchestra

Igor Stravinsky: Apollo Musagete; Concerto in D; Pulcinella

MDG / MDG Gold

Classical

Joshua Weilerstein's debut recording for MDG Gold is an extraordinary presentation of three neoclassical works by Igor Stravinsky.

— Blair Sanderson

David Bernard / Park Avenue Chamber Symphony

Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring; Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra

Recursive Classics

Classical

The 2015 revision of Stravinsky's Le Sacre du printemps receives its premiere recording from David Bernard and the Park Avenue Chamber Orchestra.

— Blair Sanderson

Alison Balsom / Tom Poster

Légende: Works for Trumpet and Piano

Warner Classics

Classical

Balsom deepens her art with a coherent program even as she plays music that could be characterized as light.

— James Manheim

Quatuor Diotima

Schoenberg, Berg, Webern: Complete Works for String Quartet

Naïve

Classical

Quatuor Diotima presents the complete works for string quartet of Arnold Schoenberg, Alban Berg, and Anton Webern.

— Blair Sanderson

Sascha Goetzel / Ksenija Sidorova

Carmen

Deutsche Grammophon

Classical

Slinky accordion and jazz-like percussion in a project that's fun and sexy, sure, but also bracing and novel.

— James Manheim

Thomas Dausgaard / Seattle Symphony Orchestra

Mahler: Symphony No. 10

Seattle Symphony

Classical

Thomas Dausgaard and the Seattle Symphony present Mahler's Tenth in the published completion by musicologist Deryck Cooke.

— Blair Sanderson

Previous Week Next Week