Featured New Album Releases

Niall Horan

Flicker

Capitol

Pop/Rock

Influenced by Fleetwood Mac and the Eagles, this satisfying set of guitar-based love songs is the solo debut from the former One Directioner.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Margo Price

All American Made

Third Man Records

Country

On her second album, Margo Price broadens her musical and lyrical horizons.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Trivium

The Sin and the Sentence

Roadrunner Records / Warner Bros.

Pop/Rock

The Florida-based decibel pushers continue their sonic metamorphosis from thrash-blasted metalcore to melody-driven (almost) trad-metal on their eighth full-length effort.

— James Christopher Monger

Destroyer

Ken

Merge

Pop/Rock

Beloved art rock curmudgeon Dan Bejar embraces synths on his post-punk-hued 11th album.

— Marcy Donelson

George Michael

Listen Without Prejudice 25 [Super Deluxe Edition] [3 CD/1 DVD]

Sony Music

Pop/Rock

An expanded edition features the remastered album, an MTV Unplugged appearance, B-sides and rarities, and a live DVD.

Jessie Ware

Glasshouse

Interscope / Island / PMR

Pop/Rock

The singer's third set of refined pop is differentiated by a couple songs about motherhood and a rare appearance from the Blue Nile's Paul Buchanan.

— Andy Kellman

The Smiths

The Queen Is Dead [Super Deluxe Edition] [2 CD/1 DVD]

Rhino / Warner Music

Pop/Rock

The Smiths' first deluxe reissue features demos, live recordings, B-sides, and remastering.

Béla Fleck / Abigail Washburn

Echo in the Valley

Rounder

Folk

The second stellar offering by the picking married couple is banjos only; every recording element had to be reproducible in concert.

— Thom Jurek

Michael Head / Michael Head & the Red Elastic Band

Adiós Señor Pussycat

Violette

Pop/Rock

Back from a spell in the wilderness, the legendary singer/songwriter returns with a richly autumnal work that's on par with his best.

— Tim Sendra

John Carpenter

Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998

Sacred Bones

Stage & Screen

Horror master John Carpenter revisits the themes to 13 of his films from the '70s through the '90s.

— Paul Simpson

Makthaverskan

III

Run for Cover Records

Pop/Rock

Angst-ridden, hook-heavy indie pop meets post-punk, with very powerful vocals from Maja Milner leading the charge.

— Tim Sendra

Jackie Shane

Any Other Way

Numero

R&B, Blues

First ever artist-approved reissue from the dynamic 1960s soul and R&B singer who lit up mid-'60s Toronto.

— Timothy Monger

Colleen

A Flame My Love, A Frequency

Thrill Jockey

Electronic, Pop/Rock

These serene yet constantly changing meditations on fear, hope, joy, and loss are some of Colleen's most vulnerable, beautiful songs yet.

— Heather Phares

Lindstrøm

It's Alright Between Us as It Is

Feedelity / Smalltown Supersound

Electronic

Norwegian producer Lindstrøm's first solo album in five years adds a darker undercurrent to his trademark space disco sound.

— Paul Simpson

David West with Teardrops / David West

Cherry on Willow

Tough Love

Pop/Rock

Second solo album from the very prolific musician is his most focused and impressive to date, drawing on T. Rex-ian grooves and indie pop warmth.

— Tim Sendra

Elizabeth & the Catapult

Keepsake

Compass

Pop/Rock

A varied songwriting showcase on themes of overcoming from Elizabeth Ziman and friends including Richard Swift and former bandmate Dan Molad.

— Marcy Donelson

Chris Young

Losing Sleep

RCA Nashville

Country

A decade into his career, Chris Young emphasizes his skills as a balladeer.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Lee Gamble

Mnestic Pressure

Hyperdub

Electronic

Lee Gamble makes his Hyperdub debut with this challenging yet stunning album of deconstructed jungle and electro.

— Paul Simpson

Circuit des Yeux

Reaching for Indigo

Drag City

Pop/Rock

Haley Fohr interprets a powerful moment of cosmic inspiration on her sixth full-length as Circuit des Yeux.

— Paul Simpson

The Jazz Butcher

The Wasted Years

Fire Records

Pop/Rock

A collection of the oddball pop band's four albums recorded for Glass Records between 1983 and 1986.

— Tim Sendra

Bill MacKay / Ryley Walker

SpiderBeetleBee

Drag City

Pop/Rock, Folk

The follow-up to Land of Plenty develops the intuitive, relaxed dialogue between the two guitarists into a full-blown musical language here.

— Thom Jurek

Tough Age

Shame

Mint Records

Pop/Rock

A cross-country relocation and fairly dramatic tonal shift characterize the Canadian punks' third LP.

— Timothy Monger

Saicobab

Sab Se Purani Bab

Thrill Jockey

Pop/Rock

Yoshimio, enigmatic vocalist and longtime member of the Boredoms and OOIOO, explores complex, cosmic raga-rock as part of Saicobab.

— Paul Simpson

Barbez / Velina Brown

For Those Who Came After: Songs of Resistance from the Spanish Civil War

Important Records / Imprec

Pop/Rock, Avant-Garde

The avant rock band and Velina Brown deliver ingenious renditions of Spanish Civil War-era songs that still resonate.

— Thom Jurek

Cheap Trick

Christmas Christmas

Big Machine Records

Pop/Rock, Holiday

Veteran rockers release a Christmas album that rocks hard and is full of seasonal fun.

— Mark Deming

Darius Rucker

When Was the Last Time

Capitol / Capitol Nashville

Country

On his fifth country album, Darius Rucker sticks to the tried and true.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Boyz II Men

Under the Streetlight

Masterworks

R&B

Nathan, Shawn, and Wanya faithfully refresh R&B classics that pre-date the soul era.

— Andy Kellman

Bully

Losing

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

The '90s alt-rock revivalists return with a solid follow-up to Feels Like.

Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah

The Emancipation Procrastination

Fat Beats Distribution / Ropeadope

Jazz

The trumpeter's third volume in his Centennial Trilogy is an ambitious electronica and hip-hop-informed production.

— Matt Collar

Odonis Odonis

No Pop

Felte

Pop/Rock

Inspired by an anti-commercial manifesto and recorded in three days, this is the band's most uncompromising music.

— Heather Phares

Keyshia Cole

11:11 Reset

Epic

R&B

The unguarded R&B singer/songwriter's first album for Epic is expectedly fraught and unexpectedly free-flowing.

— Andy Kellman

Nick Lowe

Pinker and Prouder Than Previous

Yep Roc

Pop/Rock

Nick Lowe rebounds from the Cowboy Outfit with a loose, rootsy record.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Nick Lowe

Party of One

Yep Roc

Pop/Rock

Produced by his former Rockpile mate Dave Edmunds, this features "All Men Are Liars."

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Pet Shop Boys

Elysium: Further Listening 2011-2012

Parlophone / PolyGram / Rhino

Pop/Rock

The reissue campaign continues with a second disc of demos, B-sides, remixes, new liner notes, and a Bee Gees cover.

Pet Shop Boys

Yes: Further Listening 2008-2010

Parlophone / PolyGram / Rhino

Pop/Rock

The band's strong tenth album is expanded with rarities, remixes, a medley of old hits, demos, and more.

Various Artists

Even a Tree Can Shed Tears: Japanese Folk & Rock 1969-1973

Light in the Attic Records

Pop/Rock

The first fully licensed comp of obscure acid folk and underground rock from Japan, handsomely presented by Light in the Attic.

— Thom Jurek

And So I Watch You from Afar

The Endless Shimmering

Sargent House

Pop/Rock

The Belfast-based quartet continue producing accessible, optimistic instrumental rock on their fifth full-length.

— Paul Simpson

Willie Nelson

Willie Nelson and the Boys: Willie's Stash, Vol. 2

Legacy / Legacy Recordings / Sony Music

Country, Pop/Rock

A cozy set of classic country covers recorded by Willie and his sons in 2012.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Jaye Bartell

In a Time of Trouble a Wild Exultation

Sinderlyn

Pop/Rock

Another set of poetic, gracefully atypical singer/songwriter fare from Bartell, with guests including Angel Olsen.

— Marcy Donelson

The Pack A.D.

Dollhouse

Cadence Music

Pop/Rock

Becky Black and Maya Miller are back with another slice of primal rock & roll -- all muscle and no filler.

— Mark Deming

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Fever To Tell [15th Anniversary Deluxe Edition]

Interscope / Polydor

Pop/Rock

The 2017 reissue includes photos, a documentary, and demos that capture the band's early days.

— Heather Phares

Flat Worms

Castle Face

Pop/Rock

Debut album from all-star garage punk trio sounds simple and noisy on the surface, but has plenty of smarts underneath.

— Mark Deming

Gel Set

Body Copy

2MR

Pop/Rock

Sensual, aloof, and witty, this is some of Laura Callier's clearest and most evocative minimal electro-pop yet.

— Heather Phares

Headroom

Head in the Clouds

Trouble in Mind

Pop/Rock

Powerful and darkly searching debut record from this New Haven experimental group centered around Kryssi Battalene's noisy yet controlled guitar work.

— Fred Thomas