Kings of Leon

Can We Please Have Fun

Capitol / Lovetap

Pop/Rock

An artful, emotionally resonant ninth album that finds the Nashville band recapturing the playful, post-punk energy of their early work.

— Matt Collar

Amen Dunes

Death Jokes

Sub Pop

Pop/Rock

Damon McMahon's dense, challenging critique of American culture's need to conform is equal parts timely and timeless.

— Heather Phares

Incubus

Morning View XXIII

Incubus / Virgin

Pop/Rock

A "20th" anniversary re-recording of their seminal 2001 album that adds layers of experience and age to the biggest record in their catalog.

— Neil Z. Yeung

Keane

Hopes and Fears [20th Anniversary Edition]

Interscope / Island / UMR

Pop/Rock

The band's openhearted, ambitious debut album -- presented here with extras -- stands as a classic of the post-Coldplay era.

— Tim Sendra

Shannon & the Clams

The Moon Is in the Wrong Place

Concord / Easy Eye Sound

Pop/Rock

Shannon Shaw and her retro-rocking bandmates contemplate loss while aiming for a bigger and more colorful sound.

— Mark Deming

Dehd

Poetry

Fat Possum Records

Pop/Rock

The minimalistic Chicago indie trio grows sharper, smarter, and stranger on a set of songs that's adventurous and immaculately produced.

— Fred Thomas

Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats

Nell' Ora Blu

Rise Above Records

Pop/Rock, Stage & Screen

The band blow up their proto-metal template to create an imaginary soundtrack that pays tribute to Italian cinema of the '70s.

— Tim Sendra

Angus Stone / Angus & Julia Stone / Julia Stone

Cape Forestier

Nettwerk

Pop/Rock

Balancing rustic and more reverb-heavy indie folk and '60s and '70s pop, the duo's relatively stripped-back fifth album is an affectionate one.

— Marcy Donelson

How to Dress Well

I Am Toward You

Sargent House

Pop/Rock

Shaped by memories and meditation, the project's sixth album boasts some of its most direct songwriting and emotive use of noise.

— Heather Phares

The Staple Singers

Africa '80

Omnivore

R&B, Religious

Originally released in 1983 under another title, this is a high-powered set heavy on Stax-era classics.

— Andy Kellman

Pokey LaFarge

Rhumba Country

New West

Folk, Pop/Rock, Country, Jazz

LaFarge's retro style includes Latin music, vintage soul, and even a touch of rocksteady on his tenth studio album.

— Mark Deming

Mick Harvey

Five Ways to Say Goodbye

Mute

Pop/Rock

Nick Cave's longtime collaborator shows his estimable talents as an interpretive vocalist and arranger on this powerful solo effort.

— Mark Deming

Lunchbox

Pop and Circumstance

Slumberland

Pop/Rock

The band add a pinch of melancholy and some soul music influence to a reliably punchy and joyful blast of mod indie pop.

— Tim Sendra

Marisa Anderson / Jim White

Swallowtail

Thrill Jockey

Pop/Rock, Avant-Garde, Country, Folk

The second improvised offering by the duo was recorded in Australia by the seaside in a hearty spirit of openness to musical inquiry.

— Thom Jurek

Yaya Bey

Ten Fold

Big Dada

R&B

Aided by the likes of Corey Fonville, Karriem Riggins, and Jay Daniel, the progressive R&B artist relates joy and pain with unfeigned emotion and sardonic wit.

— Andy Kellman

Morgan Guerin

Tales of the Facade

Candid

Jazz, R&B

The saxophonist/multi-instrumentalist balances atmospheric jazz fusion with groove-based R&B.

— Matt Collar

Rick Estrin / Rick Estrin and the Nightcats

The Hits Keep Coming

Alligator Records

Blues

The veteran blues outfit keeps things fresh and lively thanks to such surprises as a doo wop cover of Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows."

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Ron Miles

Old Main Chapel

Blue Note

Jazz

Live 2011 performance featuring the late trumpeter and his trio with guitarist Bill Frisell and drummer Brian Blade.

— Matt Collar

Conrad Schnitzler

Slow Motion

Bureau B

Electronic, Avant-Garde, Stage & Screen

An album of electronic sound paintings composed during the 1970s for a film by German expressionist painter Karl Horst Hödicke.

— Paul Simpson

I. Jordan

I Am Jordan

Ninja Tune

Electronic

The U.K. producer's first album reflects their personal journey and their Northern upbringing, channeling styles like donk and euphoric trance.

— Paul Simpson

John Entwistle

The Ox Box Set

Edsel

Pop/Rock

The Who bassist's solo discography gets remastered and expanded in this six-disc box set.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Unwed Sailor

Underwater Over There

Current Taste / Felte

Pop/Rock

The long-evolving instrumental group explore goth pop and shoegaze influences on their ninth full-length album.

— Fred Thomas

Various Artists

Ghana Special, Vol. 2: Electronic Highlife & Afro Sounds in the Diaspora 1980-93

Soundway

International

Stellar compilation documenting the influence of post-disco, new wave, and Caribbean sounds on Ghanaian music post-1980.

— Paul Simpson

Joe Armon-Jones / Hak Baker

Wrong Side of Town

Aquarii

Reggae, Jazz

A dubwise EP from the prolific keyboardist and producer features guests, vocalist Hak Baker and saxophonist Nubya Garcia, right up front.

— Thom Jurek

Vincent Larderet

Ravel: The Complete Works for Solo Piano, Vol. 1

Avie

Classical

A Ravel specialist undertakes a complete cycle of the composer's piano works, with promising results.

— James Manheim

Jonas Kaufmann / Elīna Garanča / Ludovic Tézier / Philippe Jordan

Wagner: Parsifal

Sony Classical

Classical

A Parsifal with many attractions, none greater than its Kundry.

— James Manheim

Bernard Haitink / Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra

Schostakowitsch: Symphonie Nr. 8

BR Klassik

Classical

Superb live Shostakovich, excelling equally in broad lines, technical details, and overall interpretation.

— James Manheim

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet / Gabor Takács-Nagy / Manchester Camerata

Mozart: Overture to Die Entführung aus dem Serail; Piano Concerto No. 11; Piano Concerto No. 12; Piano Concerto No. 13

Chandos

Classical

The sensitive and insightful "Mozart, Made in Manchester" series continues with early Viennese concertos and a slam-bang overture.

— James Manheim

Julien Labro / Takács Quartet / Clarice Assad

Takács, Assad, Labro

Yarlung Records

Classical

A completely novel collaboration among enormously different talents results in a unique string quartet release.

— James Manheim

Maarten Engeltjes / Shira Patchornik / PRJCT Amsterdam

Pergolesi: Stabat Mater; Vivaldi: Nisi Dominus

PentaTone Classics

Classical

Magnificent, operatic-styled performances of these 18th century sacred vocal standards.

— James Manheim

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