David Bowie

Conversation Piece

Rhino / Warner Records

Pop/Rock

A comprehensive document of David Bowie in 1968 and 1969, filled with demos and a new stereo mix of Space Oddity.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Lady A

Ocean

Big Machine Records

Country

The trio return to their soft-focused, soothing country-pop roots.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Céline Dion

Courage

Sony Music

Vocal, Pop/Rock

Cathartic comeback that finds the vocalist moving forward in life following a pair of personal tragedies.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Bonnie "Prince" Billy

I Made a Place

Drag City

Pop/Rock

Refined instrumentation and a lighter approach mark this indie country icon's first set of new original songs since 2011.

— Fred Thomas

Gang Starr

One of the Best Yet

Gang Starr Enterprises / INgrooves

Rap

Unexpected, gratifying return from Premier and late ex-partner Guru, built with previously unreleased verses and hooks dating from 2005 through 2009.

— Andy Kellman

The Band

The Band

Capitol

Pop/Rock

The 50th Anniversary edition of The Band's eponymous second album offers a host of extras, some of which are making their debut on this set.

Juliana Hatfield

Juliana Hatfield Sings the Police

American Laundromat Records

Pop/Rock

A clever, inspired reimagining of the Police catalog that emphasizes their punk and new wave roots.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

DJ Shadow

Our Pathetic Age

Mass Appeal

Electronic

Sharply critical double LP from Josh Davis, who goes it alone for one half and works with an impressive busload of agitated rappers for the other.

— Andy Kellman

Fall Out Boy

Believers Never Die: The Greatest Hits, Vol. 2

Island / Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

The band's second singles collection highlights a stadium-sized decade of multi-platinum hits.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Lil Peep

Everybody's Everything

Columbia

Rap

The soundtrack to a documentary film about the late emo rapper collects a cross section of previously released and unreleased material.

— Fred Thomas

Arthur Russell

Iowa Dream

Audika

Pop/Rock, Electronic, Folk

A newly unearthed collection of demos, home recordings, and otherwise unreleased songs from this multifaceted visionary.

— Fred Thomas

Kristen Anderson-Lopez / Robert Lopez

Frozen II [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]

Walt Disney

Stage & Screen, Children's

The main cast and songwriters of "Let It Go" return with seven original songs, plus covers by Weezer, Kacey Musgraves, and Panic! At the Disco.

— Marcy Donelson

Tindersticks

No Treasure But Hope

City Slang

Pop/Rock

Recorded in just five days, this effort from the British chamber pop ensemble is more organic but no less beautiful and precise.

— Mark Deming

The Springfields

Singles 1986-1991

Slumberland

Pop/Rock

Pristine collection of jangling indie pop originals and covers from a band led by future Velvet Crush drummer Ric Menck.

— Tim Sendra

Suede

Head Music [20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition]

Edsel

Pop/Rock

The 20th anniversary edition of Head Music is packed to the rafters with bonus edition, weighing in at four CDs and one DVD.

TOY

Songs of Consumption

Tough Love

Pop/Rock

The band reimagines songs by artists ranging from the Troggs to John Barry with a raw electronic palette that reinvents their sound.

— Heather Phares

Joe Henry

The Gospel According to Water

Ear Music

Pop/Rock, Stage & Screen

A rough-edged but inspiring set of thoughtful, lyrical songs written and recorded while the artist was battling cancer.

— Mark Deming

Ronnie Wood & His Wild Five / Ron Wood

Mad Lad: A Live Tribute to Chuck Berry

BMG

Blues, Pop/Rock

A blues-heavy live tribute to Chuck Berry featuring Imelda May on vocals.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Milky Chance

Mind the Moon

BMG / Muggelig Records

Pop/Rock

A dusky third album from the German duo featuring collaborations with Téme Tan, Tash Sultana, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

— Matt Collar

Molly Burch

The Molly Burch Christmas Album

Captured Tracks

Holiday, Pop/Rock

An eclectic set featuring comedians John Early and Kate Berlant, an ABBA cover, a Mamas & the Papas deep cut, and two worthwhile originals.

— Marcy Donelson

Blue Hawaii

Open Reduction Internal Fixation

Arbutus Records

Electronic, Pop/Rock

The duo turns a broken heel and a broken heart into evocative, healing grooves that hark back to early-'90s dance music.

— Heather Phares

The Pineapple Thief

Hold Our Fire

Kscope

Pop/Rock

A forceful, complex, and visceral live performance of the band's Dissolution drawn from their 2018 European tour.

— Thom Jurek

Revillos

Compendium of Weird

Damaged Goods

Pop/Rock

Odds-and-sods collection of lost tracks and different takes recorded between 1979 and 1994 by the world's giddiest group.

— Tim Sendra

Revillos

Live from the Orient

Damaged Goods

Pop/Rock

A revved-up recording of Eugene Reynolds and Fay Fife's post-Rezillos project playing a Tokyo reunion gig in 1994.

— Mark Deming

Incognito

Tomorrow's New Dream

Bluey Music

R&B

The acid jazz leaders turn 40 with another hour of feel-good material, featuring Phil Perry and Take 6 among current and some past vocalists.

— Andy Kellman

Various Artists

Passable in Pink [Official Motion Picture Soundtrack]

Omnivore

Stage & Screen, Pop/Rock

Satirical soundtrack to the author Mike Sacks' scripted podcast inspired by John Hughes' teen films of the '80s.

— Matt Collar

Marble Arch

Children of the Slump

Géographie Records

Pop/Rock

The French group don't reinvent the dreamgaze wheel on the second album, but they give it a proper spin and a nice modern update.

— Tim Sendra

Michael Nau

Less Ready to Go

Org Music

Pop/Rock

Unconventional recording and production techniques result in an alluringly woozy and wonky set representing some of Nau's best underlying songs.

— Marcy Donelson

Remember Sports

Sunchokes

Father/Daughter Records

Pop/Rock

The band's urgent, angst-ridden official debut receives a five-year-anniversary remaster and bonus demos.

— Marcy Donelson

The Young Sinclairs

Out of the Box

Requiem Pour un Twister

Pop/Rock

The band's third album has plenty of their brand of '60s revivalism and takes detours into retro soul and baggy '90s psych.

— Tim Sendra

Lily Kershaw

Arcadia

Nettwerk

Pop/Rock

The L.A. singer/songwriter moves beyond the folky leanings with lush orchestrations and elements of ethereal dream pop.

— Timothy Monger

Daedelus

End of Empire

Brainfeeder

Electronic

Limited vinyl box set containing Daedelus' war-themed trilogy of solo releases for Brainfeeder.

— Paul Simpson

David S. Ware / David S. Ware Quartet

Théâtre Garonne, 2008

Aum Fidelity

Jazz

The fifth volume in the saxophonist's archival series documents a European gig with his new quartet roadtesting the just-completed Shakti album.

— Thom Jurek

Jaap van Zweden / New York Philharmonic

Julia Wolfe: Fire in My Mouth

Decca Gold

Classical

An epic work by composer Julia Wolfe follows on her earlier Anthracite Fields in depicting an inhumane industrial setting.

— James Manheim

Yannick Nézet-Séguin / Philadelphia Orchestra / Daniil Trifonov

Destination Rachmaninov: Arrival - Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 3

Deutsche Grammophon

Classical

An excellent concluding installment in fleet pianist Trifonov's Rachmaninov overview.

— James Manheim

Paul O'Dette

Albert de Rippe: Un Perfaict Sonneur de Leut

Harmonia Mundi

Classical

The virtuoso lute music of Renaissance composer Albert da Rippe is explored in this 2019 Harmonia Mundi album by Paul O'Dette.

— Blair Sanderson

Kent Nagano / Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal

The John Adams Album

Decca

Classical

A technical tour de force from Nagano as he prepares to depart Montreal.

— James Manheim

Simon Rattle / London Symphony Orchestra

Bruckner: Symphony No. 6

LSO Live

Classical

Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra deliver Bruckner's underrated Sixth Symphony in the 2015 edition by Benjamin-Gunner Cohrs.

— Blair Sanderson

The Tallis Scholars / Peter Phillips

Josquin: Missa Mater Patris; Bauldeweyn: Missa Da pacem

Gimell

Classical

Gorgeous performances of a Josquin mass of disputed authenticity and one by the little-known Noel Bauldeweyn.

— James Manheim

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