SZA

SOS

Top Dawg Entertainment / RCA

R&B

Solána Rowe's long-awaited, many-faceted second album has much more to offer than the big hits that preceded it.

— Andy Kellman

Alabama Shakes

Boys & Girls

ATO

Pop/Rock

The tenth anniversary edition of Boys & Girls pairs the original album with an eleven-song performance on KCRW's "Morning Becomes Eclectic" featuring a non-LP song.

Imagine Dragons

Mercury: Act 2

Interscope / Kid Ina Korner

Pop/Rock

The second installment of the band's Mercury series is less emotionally cathartic and more overstuffed than its predecessor.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Taken by Trees

Another Year

Rough Trade

Pop/Rock

Stunning, serenely melancholy tribute to the solo work of Colin Blunstone that strips away the strings in favor of subdued arrangements.

— Tim Sendra

Echo & the Bunnymen

Evergreen [Deluxe Edition]

London

Pop/Rock

Strong comeback for the band that stays true to their sound while organically adding contemporary elements -- reissued with B-sides and live tracks.

— Tim Sendra

Donald Byrd

Live: Cookin' with Blue Note at Montreux

Blue Note

R&B, Jazz

In commemoration of the trumpeter's 90th birthday, this impeccably recorded, unissued concert finally sees release after nearly 50 years.

— Thom Jurek

Shannen Moser

The Sun Still Seems to Move

Lame-O Records

Pop/Rock

Third album from the Philadelphia-based singer/songwriter is a creative breakthrough in articulate, pastoral indie folk.

— Mark Deming

Amos Lee

My Ideal: A Tribute to Chet Baker Sings

Dualtone Music

Jazz

The rootsy singer pays homage to the jazz icon with a warm standards album.

— Matt Collar

Apollo Brown

This Must Be the Place

Mello Music Group

Rap

Hazy instrumental reflections from the prolific Detroit beatmaker.

— Paul Simpson

Dead Meadow

Force Form Free

Blues Funeral

Pop/Rock

The stoner icons stretch out on six long-ish jams that are big on groove and riffs but short on memorable tunes.

— Mark Deming

Harvey Mandel

Who's Calling

Tompkins Square

Blues, Pop/Rock

Raw, immediate, and loosely produced album from the guitar icon and his trio, and his second for Tompkins Square.

— Thom Jurek

Lyrics Born

Vision Board

Mobile Home Recordings

Rap

Lyrics Born balances his funky and abstract tendencies on his second 2022 release.

— Paul Simpson

Seahawks

Infinite Echo

Cascine

Electronic, New Age

The British duo embrace AI technology and vocal software programs on their "anti-dystopian" full-length.

— Paul Simpson

Benjamin Alard / Ensemble Vocal Bergamasque / Marine Fribourg / Maîtrise Notre-Dame De Paris, Chœur d'enfants

Johann Sebastian Bach: The Complete Works for Keyboard, Vol. 7 - Orgelbüchlein

Harmonia Mundi

Classical

A part of Alard's magnificent complete Bach keyboard edition, this novel presentation brings the Orgelbüchlein alive.

— James Manheim

Cappella Romana / John Michael Boyer

Heaven and Earth

Cappella Romana

Classical

Beautifully sung Orthodox choral music explores the nature of John Tavener's influence.

— James Manheim

Semyon Bychkov / Czech Philharmonic

Mahler: Symphony No. 5

PentaTone Classics

Classical

A superbly played, rather dry Mahler Fifth underscores Bychkov's growing reputation as a Mahler conductor.

— James Manheim

Villiers Quartet

Delius, Smyth: String Quartets

Naxos

Classical

Eminently worthwhile rediscovery of lost Delius is balanced by the almost unknown and thoroughly enjoyable quartet by Ethel Smyth.

— James Manheim

Juliana Koch / Rumon Gamba / BBC Philharmonic Orchestra

Ruth Gipps: Orchestral Works, Vol. 2

Chandos

Classical

Wonderfully varied works by Gipps, exacting but warm, receive committed performances from Gamba and the BBC Philharmonic.

— James Manheim

Stephanie Houtzeel / Tomasz Konieczny / Martin Haselböck / Orchester Wiener Akademie

Franz Liszt: Legends of the Saints, Vol. 1 - Michael, Francis of Paola, Francis of Assisi, Cecilia

Aparte

Classical

Highly enjoyable sacred works of Liszt performed on period instruments.

— James Manheim

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