Bruce Springsteen

Letter to You

Columbia

Pop/Rock

Recorded live in the studio with the E Street Band, this is a celebration of life and a meditation on mortality.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Gorillaz

Song Machine, Season One [Deluxe Edition]

Parlophone / Warner Music / Warner Records

Pop/Rock, Rap

The Gorillaz singles project of 2020 results in a time capsule with a surprisingly optimistic undertone.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Major Lazer

Music Is the Weapon

Because Music

Reggae, Electronic

The rousing fourth set of island-blasted bliss from Diplo and a cast of international, cross-genre friends.

— Neil Z. Yeung

The Mountain Goats

Getting Into Knives

Merge

Pop/Rock

Working without a thematic concept, John Darnielle has penned a great set of character studies played with heart, soul, and skill.

— Mark Deming

Jeff Tweedy

Love Is the King

dBpm

Pop/Rock

The Wilco frontman and his sons ponder love, fear, and a truly strange era with 11 songs that fall between hope and doubt.

— Mark Deming

Beastie Boys

Beastie Boys Music

Capitol

Rap

The best Beastie Boys greatest hits assembled to date.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Adrianne Lenker

songs and instrumentals

4AD

Pop/Rock

An analog, acoustic double album recorded while sequestered in a one-room cabin in Massachusetts in mid-2020.

— Marcy Donelson

DeJ Loaf

Sell Sole II

BMG

Rap

Long-awaited debut studio album from this Detroit rapper balances sleek, controlled melodic flows with moments of hyped-up energy.

— Fred Thomas

Ela Minus

acts of rebellion

Domino

Pop/Rock, Electronic

The producer/songwriter's debut is a kinetic, softly subversive triumph designed to make listeners think as well as dance.

— Heather Phares

Kaki King

Modern Yesterdays

Cantaloupe

Avant-Garde, Folk, Pop/Rock

On her first studio outing in five years, the guitarist teams with a sound designer in delivering a groundbreaking set of instrumentals.

— Thom Jurek

Actress

Karma & Desire

Ninja Tune

Electronic

Darren Cunningham is joined by a mix of vocalists and instrumentalists, including Vanessa Benelli Mosell and Sampha, on his least esoteric LP.

— Andy Kellman

clipping.

Visions of Bodies Being Burned

Sub Pop

Rap, Avant-Garde

The noise rap trio continue the deep dive into horrorcore that they began on their last album, focusing on themes of paranoia and grisly violence.

— Fred Thomas

Loma

Don't Shy Away

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

The sophomore full-length effort from the American indie rock trio effectively combines elemental dream pop and dark folktronica.

— James Christopher Monger

Ty Dolla $ign

Featuring Ty Dolla $ign

Atlantic

R&B

Trailing another slew of collaborative hits, Tyrone Griffin's third LP is another fine display of his wordplay, harmonies, and astute production.

— Andy Kellman

Laura Veirs

My Echo

Raven Marching Band Records

Pop/Rock

Recorded while her marriage was falling apart, the songwriter delivers a spare, powerful song cycle about uncertainty and loss.

— Mark Deming

Magik Markers

2020

Drag City

Pop/Rock

The trio's first album in nearly a decade captures the fragmented feel of its namesake year with delicate folk-pop, clattering rock, and open emotion.

— Heather Phares

Fuzz

III

In the Red Records

Pop/Rock

Pummeling, riff-heavy proto-metal spiked with biker rock and psych delivered with unvarnished power.

— Tim Sendra

This Is the Kit

Off Off On

Rough Trade

Pop/Rock

The fifth LP from Kate Stables' long-tenured indie folk project pairs appealing emotional warmth with restless, rhythmic arrangements.

— Timothy Monger

Better Person

Something to Lose

Arbutus Records / Mansions and Millions

Pop/Rock

The debut full-length from this Polish crooner shapes synth pop influences into a thick atmosphere of wistful reflection.

— Fred Thomas

Joe Bonamassa

Royal Tea

J&R Adventures

Blues

A period-accurate tribute to the glory days of British blues.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Joel Ross

Who Are You?

Blue Note

Jazz

The vibraphonist's sophomore album of expansive, harmonically and tonally colorful jazz.

— Matt Collar

Shemekia Copeland

Uncivil War

Alligator Records

Blues

The blues diva sounds strong, passionate, and thoughtful on this album dominated by social and political themes.

— Mark Deming

John Frusciante

Maya

Planet Mu / Timesig

Electronic

The RHCP guitarist's first purely electronic album under his own name is an impressive set of tracks inspired by jungle and breakbeat hardcore.

— Paul Simpson

I Dont Know How but They Found Me

Razzmatazz

Fearless Records

Pop/Rock

Masterful debut from the alternative rock duo that fuses angular grooves with glam flair.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Pallbearer

Forgotten Days

Nuclear Blast

Pop/Rock

Arkansas' psychedelic doom metal merchants balance a back-to-basics approach with melodic invention, prog asides, and fine production.

— Thom Jurek

The Luxembourg Signal

Long Now

Shelflife

Pop/Rock

The band's third album is more sweetly hooky dream pop that's stadium huge and bedroom small at the same time.

— Tim Sendra

Sam Amidon

Sam Amidon

Nonesuch

Folk, Pop/Rock

Amidon's artistry is on full display on a return to folk covers that updates traditional fare as well as more-modern touchpoints like Taj Mahal.

— Marcy Donelson

Patrick Cowley

Some Funkettes

Dark Entries

R&B

A raw set of previously unearthed disco and funk covers recorded by the iconic producer between 1975 and 1977.

— Paul Simpson

Lera Lynn

On My Own

Universal

Country

Working alone, Lera Lynn expands her template so her moody music is warm, sometimes comforting.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Bootsy Collins

The Power of the One

Bootzilla

R&B

The master funk bassist's first album in three years keeps the party going in remote, star-studded style.

— Andy Kellman

Electronic System

Vol. II

Real Gone Music

Electronic, Easy Listening

Cheerful, Moog-driven instrumental pop album from the Belgian musician and engineer, several years before he founded synth pop pioneers Telex.

— Paul Simpson

Frankie Reyes

Originalitos

Stones Throw

Latin, Electronic

Gabriel Reyes-Whittaker follows his 2016 LP of traditional Latin melodies played on a glowing keyboard with a similar album of his own works.

— Paul Simpson

Junglepussy

JP4

Jagjaguwar

Rap, R&B

The New York rapper/vocalist reaches new creative ground on this album, pairing risky production moves with inward-looking lyrical themes.

— Fred Thomas

Sevendust

Blood & Stone

Rise Records

Pop/Rock

As steely and sound as it is indifferent to maturation, the 13-song set nevertheless impresses via brute force and mastery of craft.

— James Christopher Monger

Keaton Henson

Monument

PIAS

Pop/Rock

The versatile English musician returns to singer/songwriter mode for an album that contends with his father's worsening health.

— Marcy Donelson

The Vamps

Cherry Blossom

Virgin EMI

Pop/Rock

The Vamps return after a two-year hiatus with a vibrant and sophisticated fourth album.

— Matt Collar

Tino Contreras

La Noche De Los Dioses

Brownswood

Jazz

The iconic, nonagenarian musician and architect of Mexican jazz delivers a brand-new recording for Gilles Peterson's Brownswood label.

— Thom Jurek

Tcheser Holmes / Aquiles Navarro

Heritage of the Invisible II

International Anthem

Jazz, Avant-Garde

The avant-garde duo's collage-like debut, combining acidic free jazz-fusion, Latin rhythms, and electronics into a vibrant soundscape.

— Matt Collar

Various Artists

Bubblerock Is Here to Stay! The British Pop Explosion 1970-73

Grapefruit

Pop/Rock

A heaping basket of tuneful bubblegum nuggetry from Britain's early-'70s pop market.

— Timothy Monger

Various Artists

Right Back Where We Started From: Female Pop & Soul in 70s Britain

RPM

Pop/Rock, R&B

This triple-disc set of British female soul singers of the 1970s is a wild portrait of a vividly colorful decade.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Giulio Prandi / Ghislieri Choir / Orchestra Ghislieri

Niccolò Jommelli: Requiem

Arcana

Classical

An impressive revival of a forgotten 18th century masterpiece by Niccolò Jommelli.

— James Manheim

Thomas Bloch / Tamara Stefanovich / Alexander Soddy / National Theater Orchestra, Mannheim

Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie

Oehms Classics

Classical

A clean performance that brings out the many layers of this symphony of love.

— James Manheim

René Jacobs / B'Rock

Schubert: Symphonies 2 & 3

PentaTone Classics

Classical

A vigorous historical-instrument pairing of early Schubert symphonies continues to showcase the talents of the B'Rock Orchestra.

— James Manheim

Trinity College Choir, Cambridge / Stephen Layton

Mäntyjärvi: Choral Music

Hyperion

Classical

Eclectic, highly listenable works from a neglected Finnish composer.

— James Manheim

Simone Dinnerstein

A Character of Quiet

Orange Mountain Music

Classical

Sonically innovative pandemic-time recording of Glass and Schubert, from the pianist's Brooklyn home.

— James Manheim

Laurence Equilbey / Insula Orchestra

Magic Mozart

Erato

Classical

Works by Mozart with magical elements, including real rarities, performed with love.

— James Manheim

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