J Mascis

What Do We Do Now

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

The fifth solo set from the Dinosaur Jr. singer/guitarist hits with the force of a full band while still leaning into melancholic acoustic moods.

— Fred Thomas

Lee "Scratch" Perry

King Perry

!K7 / False Idols

Reggae, Electronic, Pop/Rock

Playful and slightly poignant posthumous effort from the dub pioneer, featuring guests like Tricky, Greentea Peng, and Shaun Ryder.

— Paul Simpson

Dina Ögon

Orion

Playground Music

Pop/Rock

The Swedish indie pop combo's third LP is a wonder of radiant melodies and arrangements.

— Timothy Monger

Vijay Iyer / Linda May Han Oh / Tyshawn Sorey

Compassion

ECM

Jazz

The trio's second outing showcases newly recorded compositions and compelling covers rendered with poignancy, humor, invention, and energy.

— Thom Jurek

Vera Sola

Peacemaker

City Slang

Pop/Rock, Country

The singer/songwriter contemplates how we reckon with the past on her mesmerizing fusions of folk, country, vocal pop, and punk.

— Heather Phares

The Paranoid Style

The Interrogator

Bar/None Records

Pop/Rock

The garage band's smart mélange of lyrical and musical references delivers consistently on LP four, featuring new member Peter Holsapple (the dB's).

— Marcy Donelson

Andy Williams

When You Fall in Love: Lost Columbia Masters 1977-1982

Real Gone Music

Vocal, Easy Listening, Stage & Screen, Pop/Rock

An achingly romantic collection of rare soft rock and disco tracks from the crooner's final years at Columbia.

— Matt Collar

Jeremiah Chiu / Marta Sofia Honer / Ariel Kalma

The Closest Thing to Silence

International Anthem

Avant-Garde, New Age, Electronic

Exploratory and uplifting intergenerational collaboration that occasionally takes on a more spiritual aura.

— Paul Simpson

Various Artists

Fantastic Voyage: New Sounds for the European Canon 1977-1981

Ace

Pop/Rock, Electronic

Adventurous art rock sounds that appeared in the wake of Bowie's Berlin trilogy, from stiff industrial funk to quirky electro and new wave.

— Paul Simpson

Jowee Omicil

Spiritual Healing: Bwa Kayiman Freedom Suite

Bash! Village

Jazz

This conceptual album reverently and restlessly addresses the night in 1791 when the idea for the Haitian Revolution was conceived.

— Thom Jurek

Heavenly

The Decline & Fall of Heavenly

Skep Wax Records

Pop/Rock

Third album from the British indie pop heroes is upgraded in clarity and control, covering a lot of stylistic ground in just eight songs.

— Fred Thomas

Calvin Arnold

Funky Way: Venture Recordings 1967-1969

Kent / Kent Soul

R&B

Rare and unreleased tracks from an overlooked master of Southern soul, including his 1967 hit "Funky Way."

— Mark Deming

Divr

Is This Water

Universal / Wejazz

Jazz

The Swiss piano trio compose in real time and play loops that don't repeat amid canny rhythms and textures.

— Thom Jurek

The Last Dinner Party

Prelude to Ecstasy

Island

Pop/Rock

A remarkably assured set of bold-faced indie rock teaming with earworm melodies, darkly romantic lyrics, and thespian bluster.

— James Christopher Monger

Bertrand Chamayou

Letter(s) to Erik Satie

Erato

Classical

A delightful exploration of the strong compositional relationship between Erik Satie and John Cage.

— James Manheim

Inon Barnatan

Rachmaninoff Reflections

PentaTone Classics

Classical

Rachmaninov release featuring a new single-piano arrangement -- made by the artist -- of the Symphonic Dances, Op. 45.

— James Manheim

Ludovic Morlot / Seattle Symphony Orchestra

Messiaen: Des canyons aux etoiles…

Seattle Symphony

Classical

Strong live performance of Messiaen's paean to the Utah canyonlands, with sharp accents from pianist Steven Osborne.

— James Manheim

Valencia Baryton Project

Haydn: Baryton Trios - Treasures from the Esterháza Palace, Vol. 2

Naxos

Classical

Delightful chamber works written by Haydn for his prince, an enthusiast of the unusual baryton.

— James Manheim

Sandrine Piau / Frank Braley / Eric Le Sage

Le Ruban Dénoué: Valses

Sony Classical

Classical

Wonderful, largely forgotten two-piano works receive sensitive, rich performances.

— James Manheim

Voces8

A Choral Christmas

Decca

Classical, Holiday

A joyous Christmas release mixes familiar orchestral and a cappella fare with an ebullient new Magnificat.

— James Manheim

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