Editors' Choice for November 2020

AC/DC reconvened to pay tribute to their late founding member Malcolm Young, winding up with deeply felt good-time rock & roll.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Ex-Huggy Bear and Male Bonding members make lots of noise on their intensely political avant-punk debut.

— Tim Sendra

A spirit-lifting album from the Brazilian jazz legends, supported with knowing finesse by the Jazz Is Dead instigators.

— Andy Kellman

Fully analog-recorded work from electronic composer Ben Chatwin that aims to capture the energy of hidden frequencies.

— Paul Simpson

Richard H. Kirk revives Cabaret Voltaire as a solo act, using vintage equipment but otherwise exploring fresh ideas.

— Paul Simpson

Teaming up with two members of Tom Petty's Heartbreakers, the neo-outlaw digs further into his funky Southern groove.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

A fresh, unusually vigorous reading of the Ceremony of Carols.

— James Manheim

On his first solo recital since 1988's Andina, the bandoneon master offers spontaneous musical reflections from his experience of a life in sound.

— Thom Jurek

A deep dive into Elvis Presley's June 1970 sessions in Nashville, a period which constitutes his last great studio recordings.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

A splendid set of verismo selections, re-creating the repertory of a historical soprano, that prizes emotional intimacy over vocal power.

— James Manheim

All eight of the singer's RCA Victor LPs, plus well-chosen bonus tracks, lovingly packaged together for the first time.

— Andy Kellman

The visionary composer and 11 musicians deliver a kaleidoscopic, genre-blurring journey through sound, vision, sense perception, and emotion.

— Thom Jurek

A spell-binding set from the Brooklyn-based electronic composer of cyclical synth-based works steeped in mythology.

— Timothy Monger

The third album from this ambient electronic project is its most complex and personality-rich, adding spoken word audio to textural loops for surprisingly strong effect.

— Fred Thomas

A collection of pleasantly hazy and warmly atmospheric old-timey tunes from this master of outsider folk music.

— Fred Thomas

Laid-back late Brahms that gets at the endless subtleties and profundities.

— James Manheim

The Australian pop diva triumphantly returns to the dancefloor on this blissful, nostalgic 15th dose of joy.

— Neil Z. Yeung

After the tragic passing of their drummer, the band return with the help of the Heliocentrics' Catto to deliver their toughest, most expansive set yet.

— Tim Sendra

The first peek into the pioneering electronic artist's archive of rarities is a trove of delightful, spooky, quaint, and futuristic moments.

— Heather Phares

The virtuoso guitarist's first album for Italy's Frontiers Records showcases her hard-rock chops.

— Matt Collar

Seventh album from this digital dub deconstructionist hides a non-stop stream of details deep within deceptively relaxed arrangements.

— Fred Thomas

Clean, vivid performances of the Respighi standards are joined by rare early works.

— James Manheim

A cosmic country opera that evokes a Muscle Shoals-backed Grateful Dead piloting a boogie van into the Greek underworld.

— James Christopher Monger

Kevin Martin discharges some of his crispest dancehall and dub deconstructions with crucial lyrical and vocal assistance from Dis Fig.

— Andy Kellman

The Green Child's second album trades the blurry cohesion of their debut for freewheeling, surprising electro-pop.

— Heather Phares

Classic Elephant 6-style indie rock played with energy and craft on the group's best album to date.

— Tim Sendra

Masaki Batoh and his restless, expansive quartet deliver a compelling and wide-ranging exercise in psychedelic space exploration.

— Thom Jurek

On their 11th studio album, this alt-rock institution transfigure their layered guitar daydreams into brooding synth pop.

— Fred Thomas

After a nine-year hiatus, the German post-punk duo sound tighter, sleeker, and surprisingly vital on their sixth album.

— Timothy Monger

A fascinating celebration of British folk-rock's eerier, more spiritual side during its late-'60s and early-'70s heyday.

— Timothy Monger

A stunning exploration of the chiming pop bands who released singles in the wake of R.E.M., collected and presented with scholarly care by Captured Tracks.

— Tim Sendra

Led by guitarist Henry Kaiser and drummer John Hanrahan, this electric quintet delivers incendiary interpretations of John Coltrane's two linked suites.

— Thom Jurek

The beloved electro-acoustic jazz quartet teams with the WDR Big Band to imaginatively rework crowd favorites from their catalog.

— Thom Jurek