Bonnie "Prince" Billy / Bill Callahan

Blind Date Party

Drag City

Pop/Rock

With a little help from their friends, the longtime Drag City artists collaborate for the first time in decades on an entertaining and moving set of covers.

— Heather Phares

Pinegrove

11:11

Rough Trade

Pop/Rock

Evan Stephens Hall and band deliver another tuneful, immediate, lyrically adept set, this time focusing on sociopolitical woes of the early 2020s.

— Marcy Donelson

Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)

Legacy

Stage & Screen, R&B

Near-faultless audio companion to the crucial Questlove-directed documentary on the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival.

— Andy Kellman

Combo Chimbita

IRE

Anti-

Latin, Electronic, International, Reggae

The Brooklyn psychedelic cumbia quartet explore revolutionary politics and spiritual growth on this inspired and sometimes transcendent third album.

— Fred Thomas

Immanuel Wilkins

The 7th Hand

Blue Note

Jazz

On his sophomore offering, the alto saxophonist and composer asks and entertains an audacious question: What if God joined the band?

— Thom Jurek

Eels

Extreme Witchcraft

E Works

Pop/Rock

The often dour Mark Oliver Everett gets (almost) happy on this album rooted in energetic, guitar-based rock & roll.

— Mark Deming

Simone Felice

All the Bright Coins

Chrysalis Records

Pop/Rock, Country

The songwriter and producer wears his heart on his sleeve in a collection of powerful, often beautiful introspection.

— Mark Deming

The Temptations

Temptations 60

UMG

R&B

Motown legends celebrate a milestone in fine style with help from the likes of Smokey Robinson and Narada Michael Walden.

— Andy Kellman

St. Paul & the Broken Bones

The Alien Coast

ATO

R&B, Pop/Rock

The Alabama octet continue to experiment and develop their sound on a mercurial fourth LP that fuses soul, jazz, stoner rock, hop-hop, and more.

— Marcy Donelson

Blossom Toes

We Are Ever So Clean [Expanded Edition]

Esoteric Recordings

Pop/Rock

Reissue of this obscure chamber psych album from 1967 is filled out with 27 additional bonus tracks, including demos, live tracks, and BBC sessions.

— Fred Thomas

Josephine Foster

Godmother

Fire Records

Pop/Rock

A standout figure in psychedelic folk circles adds a completely new and unexpected dimension to her craft with this album of synth experiments and electronically augmented arrangements.

— Fred Thomas

Brent Cobb

And Now, Let’s Turn to Page...

Ol' Buddy Records

Country

A soulful, even swaggering, yet sincere gospel album from the Americana singer/songwriter.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Ornette Coleman

Round Trip: Ornette Coleman on Blue Note

Blue Note

Jazz

The vinyl box contains the musician's five leader albums and his appearance as a sideman on Jackie McLean's New and Old Gospel.

— Thom Jurek

Fruit Bats

Sometimes a Cloud Is Just a Cloud: Slow Growers, Sleeper Hits and Lost Songs (2001-2021)

Merge

Pop/Rock

The long-running indie folk project collects well-known and obscure tracks from their 20-year history.

— Fred Thomas

John Mayall

The Sun Is Shining Down

Forty Below Records

Pop/Rock, Blues

Retired from the road, the king of the British blues shows no signs of slowing down in the studio on this vital, star-studded date.

— Thom Jurek

Lady Wray

Piece of Me

Big Crown

R&B

Still tight with Leon Michels, Nicole Wray augments fine contemporary soul singles dating back to 2019 with fresh material up to the same standard.

— Andy Kellman

Cloakroom

Dissolution Wave

Relapse Records

Pop/Rock

A deep space radio emission reaching out amongst the graveyard of stars in search of a ping.

— James Christopher Monger

Complex

Live for the Minute: The Complex Anthology

Grapefruit

Pop/Rock

Fun collection that comprises the entire recorded output of a Blackpool band caught between bubblegum and prog with heavy psych influences as well.

— Tim Sendra

Elena Setién

Unfamiliar Minds

Thrill Jockey

Pop/Rock

Recorded with electronics artist Xabier Erkizia, an eerier, atmospheric fourth LP highlighted by commanding vocal performances including readings.

— Marcy Donelson

Eric Gales

Crown

Provogue

Blues

The Memphis-born guitar slinger, co-produced by Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith, offers 16 massive tracks crisscrossing blues, funk, soul, and rock.

— Thom Jurek

Kreidler

Spells and Daubs

Bureau B

Pop/Rock, Electronic

The Düsseldorf-based group channel abstract funk and dub on their most concise, focused effort in decades.

— Paul Simpson

Tim Hecker

The North Water [Original Score]

Invada / Lakeshore Records

Electronic, Stage & Screen

Captivating score for a miniseries about an Arctic whaling expedition, perfectly complementing the uneasy journey on the icy seas.

— Paul Simpson

Various Artists

C91

Cherry Red

Pop/Rock

Cherry Red-curated collection that successfully explores the various streams of indie pop and rock that made up the U.K. music scene in 1991.

— Tim Sendra

Maya Shenfeld

In Free Fall

Thrill Jockey

Avant-Garde, Electronic

Berlin-based composer Maya Shenfeld's free-spirited debut fuses several techniques, blurring lines between post-minimalism, drone, and noise.

— Paul Simpson

Inon Barnatan

Time Traveler's Suite

PentaTone Classics

Classical

A fascinating exploration of resonances of the Baroque style down to the present day.

— James Manheim

Melody Moore / Stefano Secco / Lawrence Foster

Puccini: Madama Butterfly

PentaTone Classics

Classical

Orchestrally conceived Madama Butterfly, helmed by Lawrence Foster, showcases two underrated singers.

— James Manheim

Aviv Quartet

Schubert: The Last Quartets

Aparte

Classical

Dramatic readings of Schubert's last quartets look forward toward Schumann and beyond.

— James Manheim

St. John's College Choir, Cambridge / David Hill / Andrew Nethsingha / Christopher Robinson / Yale Schola Cantorum

The Tree

Signum Classics

Classical

Anthology of recent Choir of St. John's College recordings serves its new concept well.

— James Manheim

Arianna Vendittelli / Abchordis Ensemble / Andrea Buccarella

Vivaldi: Cantate per Soprano I

Naïve

Classical

New volume in Naïve's Vivaldi Edition explores the relatively neglected secular cantata genre, with a singer suited to the music.

— James Manheim

Philip Ficsor / Constantine Finehouse / Steven Gross

William Bolcom: Trio for Horn, Violin and Piano; Suite No. 2 for Solo Violin

Naxos

Classical

Fine performances of new works by octogenarian William Bolcom, who seems to be in vigorous spirits.

— James Manheim

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