Björk

Utopia

One Little Independent Records / Wellhart

Electronic

The Icelandic artist rebounds from Vulnicura's despair with lighter-than-air songs about thriving after loss.

— Heather Phares

Noel Gallagher / Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds

Who Built the Moon?

Caroline / Sour Mash

Pop/Rock

Gallagher revives his noisy, psychedelic glam side.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

The Fall

A-Sides 1978-2016

Cherry Red

Pop/Rock

Generous three-CD box compiling the main tracks from the many singles and EPs by Mancunian post-punk innovators the Fall.

— Paul Simpson

Ramones

Rocket to Russia [40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition] [3 CD/1 LP]

GC / Rhino

Pop/Rock

Third album by three-chord punk architects with inspired covers and classic originals--the artistic equal of their legendary debut.

— Patrick Sullivan

Sufjan Stevens

The Greatest Gift

Asthmatic Kitty

Pop/Rock

A companion mixtape to the artist's outstanding 2015 album Carrie & Lowell, featuring remixes and unreleased tracks.

— Mark Deming

Dude York

Halftime for the Holidays

Hardly Art

Holiday, Pop/Rock

A batch of alternately chipper and bummed-out holiday tracks, mostly originals, from the fun and lighthearted Seattle trio.

— Tim Sendra

Eagles

Hotel California [40th Anniversary Expanded Edition] [2 CD]

Asylum / Elektra / Rhino

Pop/Rock

The Eagles' biggest album captures the sound and feel of Southern California in the late '70s.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Xenoula

Xenoula

Weird World

Pop/Rock

Produced by fellow musical maverick Sam Dust (aka LA Priest), Romy Xeno's debut offers quietly catchy, eccentric indie electronica.

— Marcy Donelson

Steve Moore

Mayhem

Relapse Records

Stage & Screen, Electronic

Scattered but suspenseful soundtrack to Joe Lynch's thriller Mayhem, composed by Zombi's Steve Moore.

— Paul Simpson

Pugwash

Silverlake

Lojinx

Pop/Rock

Irish pop prodigy teams up with the similarly gifted Jason Falkner for a splendid exercise in hooks and melodies.

— Mark Deming

The Fall

Singles 1978-2016

Cherry Red

Pop/Rock

Lavish seven-CD box compiling A-sides and select B-sides from the many singles and EPs by Mancunian post-punk innovators the Fall.

— Paul Simpson

A Certain Ratio

The Graveyard and the Ballroom

Mute

Pop/Rock

Originally a cassette-only release, the Manchester band's full-length debut is split between studio and live recordings.

— Andy Kellman

American Metropole Orchestra / Micky Dolenz

Out of Nowhere

7A Records

Pop/Rock

A live album recorded with a 30-piece orchestra.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Sollazzo Ensemble

Parle Qui Veut: Moralizing Songs of the Middle Ages

Linn Records

Classical

For its debut on Linn, the Sollazzo Ensemble presents 14th century moralizing songs that reflect the traditions of the trouvères and troubadours.

— Blair Sanderson

The City Musick / William Lyons

The Topping Tooters of the Town: Music of the London Waits 1580-1650

Avie

Classical

The London Waits performed rousing dance music and songs for civic ceremonies and various public functions in the 16th and 17th centuries.

— Blair Sanderson

St. Thomas Choir of Men and Boys / John Scott

Duruflé & Howells: Requiems

Resonus Classics

Classical

The final recording by John Scott and the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys features Requiems by Howells and Duruflé.

— Blair Sanderson

Philippe Jordan / Wiener Symphoniker

Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3

Solo Musica

Classical

Philippe Jordan and the Vienna Symphony launch a Beethoven cycle, due to be completed by the 250th anniversary of his birth in 2020.

— Blair Sanderson

BBC Symphony Orchestra / Martyn Brabbins

Vaughan Williams: A London Symphony (1920 Version)

Hyperion

Classical

Martyn Brabbins and the BBC Symphony Orchestra present the seldom-performed 1920 version of A London Symphony with three Vaughan Williams rarities.

— Blair Sanderson

Riccardo Muti / Wiener Philharmoniker

Bruckner: Symphony No. 2; Richard Strauss: Der Bürger als Edelmann

Deutsche Grammophon

Classical

Riccardo Muti celebrated his 75th birthday with performances of Bruckner and Strauss at the 2016 Salzburg Festival.

— Blair Sanderson

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