Deerhunter

Why Hasn't Everything Already Disappeared?

4AD

Pop/Rock

The band's fascinating eighth album examines impermanence, inhumanity, and death with songs that sound deceptively life-affirming.

— Heather Phares

James Blake

Assume Form

Polydor / Republic

Pop/Rock

Fourth album from the usually downcast producer/singer marks a departure from his distant melancholy, embracing more extroverted themes and moods.

— Fred Thomas

Sharon Van Etten

Remind Me Tomorrow

Jagjaguwar

Pop/Rock

Van Etten expands her horizons on this darkly comforting album.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Toro y Moi

Outer Peace

Carpark Records

Pop/Rock, R&B

Half giddy DFA-influenced dance tracks and half nocturnal Chill&B tracks, the album is a mixed bag of moods and energy levels.

— Tim Sendra

Maggie Rogers

Heard It in a Past Life

Capitol / Polydor

Pop/Rock

The singer/songwriter's debut album is filled with polished production and heartfelt performances.

Mike Posner

A Real Good Kid

Island / Mike Posner

Pop/Rock

Heartbreaking journey that finds the pop singer processing his father's death to devastating yet hopeful effect.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Juliana Hatfield

Weird

American Laundromat Records

Pop/Rock

A barbed ode to the joys of being a weird recluse.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Steve Gunn

The Unseen In Between

Matador

Pop/Rock

On his sophomore Matador outing, the guitarist shifts his focus to a more direct, vocal-centric method of songwriting and delivers a gem.

— Thom Jurek

Steve Mason

About the Light

Domino / Double Six

Pop/Rock

The former Beta Band mastermind offers a more organic and collaborative full-band approach on his excellent fourth outing.

— Timothy Monger

M. Ward

What a Wonderful Industry

M.Ward Records

Pop/Rock

The Portland songman's surprise ninth outing is a concept album of colorful tales culled from his career in the music industry.

— Timothy Monger

Papa Roach

Who Do You Trust?

Eleven Seven

Pop/Rock

The hooky, well-balanced 11th studio album from the California rap-rock stalwarts.

— Matt Collar

Pedro the Lion

Phoenix

Polyvinyl

Pop/Rock

After a 15-year gap, David Bazan revives his first band with a reflective and pleasingly muscular addition to their legacy.

— Timothy Monger

The Flesh Eaters

I Used to Be Pretty

Yep Roc

Pop/Rock

The L.A. Punk All-Star lineup of Chris D.'s band returns after 37 years, and sounds as tough and evocative as ever.

— Mark Deming

The Twilight Sad

It Won't Be Like This All the Time

Rock Action

Pop/Rock

Revitalized by new members and more confessional songwriting, the band delivers some of its most vital music in years.

— Heather Phares

Joe Jackson

Fool

Ear Music

Pop/Rock

A set of artful pop songs that may be a bit too artful for their own good, though the performances are superb throughout.

— Mark Deming

Guster

Look Alive

Nettwerk

Pop/Rock

In evoking the '80s synth pop of their youth, Guster have unearthed a small gem that gives off a familiar yet undeniably dazzling shine.

— James Christopher Monger

Julian Lynch

Rat's Spit

Underwater Peoples

Pop/Rock

Sixth album from Real Estate collaborator is his strongest, offering a densely layered but clearly arranged microcosm of insular sonics.

— Fred Thomas

Ronnie Milsap

The Duets

G-force / Riser House Entertainment

Country

Ronnie Milsap teams with old friends and new stars on a stroll through his back pages.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Switchfoot

Native Tongue

Concord / Fantasy

Pop/Rock

The upbeat 11th studio album from the California outfit features a guest spot from M83's Kaela Sinclair.

— Matt Collar

Night Beats

Myth of a Man

Heavenly

Pop/Rock

Group founder Danny Lee Blackwell teams with Dan Auerbach for a polished studio session full of pop, soul, and country flavors.

— Mark Deming

Liz Brasher

Painted Image

Fat Possum Records

Pop/Rock, R&B

The Memphis-based singer/guitarist makes her full-length debut with eclectic retro-soul.

— Marcy Donelson

Aesop Rock / Malibu Ken / Tobacco

Malibu Ken

Rhymesayers Entertainment

Rap

Freakish yet logical collaboration between brainy wordsmith Aesop Rock and Black Moth Super Rainbow mastermind Tobacco.

— Paul Simpson

Alice Merton

Mint

Mom + Pop Music

Pop/Rock

Sleek and sassy full-length debut that includes the breakout hit "No Roots."

— Marcy Donelson

Buke and Gase

Scholars

Brassland

Pop/Rock

Experimental Brooklyn duo combine their self-designed instruments with a heavy dose of electronic sound and manipulation.

— Mark Deming

Cody Johnson

Ain't Nothin' to It

Atlantic / Cojo / Elektra / Warner Music

Country

Cody Johnson makes the leap to the majors with a casually assured, proudly traditional record.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Bardo Pond

Bardo Pond

Fire Records

Pop/Rock

Bardo Pond's 2010 debut for Fire Records is a typically sprawling psychedelic behemoth.

— Paul Simpson

The Dead C

Rare Ravers

Ba Da Bing Records / Bing

Avant-Garde, Pop/Rock

More metered than some of their free noise excursions, these lengthy improvisations are blanketed in meditative single-note fuzz.

— Fred Thomas

Lost Under Heaven

Love Hates What You Become

Mute

Pop/Rock

The Manchester duo deliver a cathartic, emotionally raw sophomore album that's as moving as it is artful.

— Matt Collar

Dolphin Midwives

Liminal Garden

Beacon Sound

Pop/Rock

Delicate yet fractured album of manipulated harps and ethereal vocals from Portland-based artist Sage Fisher.

— Paul Simpson

Thierry Fischer / Paul Jacobs / Utah Symphony

Saint-Saëns: Trois Tableaux Symphoniques d'après La Foi; Bacchanale from Samson et Dalila; Symphony No. 3 'Organ'

Hyperion

Classical

Saint-Saëns gems from a newly energized Utah Symphony.

— James Manheim

Natalie Clein / Christian Ihle Hadland

Clarke: Viola Sonata; Bridge: Cello Sonata; Vaughan Williams: Six Studies in English Folk Song

Hyperion

Classical

Gutsy performances of passionate, somewhat neglected works from the first decades of the 20th century.

— James Manheim

Various Artists

Reiko Füting: Distant Song

New Focus

Classical

The challenging music of Reiko Füting is presented by American, German, and Dutch musicians on this 2018 release from New Focus Recordings.

— Blair Sanderson

Jordi Savall / Le Concert des Nations

Terpsichore: Apothéose de la Danse baroque - J-F. Rebel & G.Ph. Telemann

Alia Vox

Classical

Jordi Savall and Le Concert des Nations compare dance suites by Jean-Féry Rebel and Georg Philipp Telemann on this 2018 AliaVox release.

— Blair Sanderson

François-Xavier Roth / Les Cris de Paris / Les Siècles

Debussy: Jeux; Nocturnes; Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune

Harmonia Mundi

Classical

Revelatory, arresting historical-instrument performances of major Debussy orchestral works.

— James Manheim

Roger Muraro

Debussy: Études; Olivier Messiaen: Fauvettes de l'Hérault - Concert des garrigues

Harmonia Mundi

Classical

The news here is the three-movement Fauvettes de l'Hérault, reconstructed by pianist Muraro from an incomplete Messiaen project.

— James Manheim

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