A short-but-sweet footnote in a mind-blowing campaign to remind people that a live Can performance must have been something to behold.

While Crybaby is its own project and holds its own ground in their discography, remnants of previous eras of the duo are heard throughout, contributing to its nostalgic quality for longtime listeners.

The Mars Volta becomes more rewarding with repetition. Despite the outwardly more accessible style, the group has stuffed the record full of interesting musical choices.

Suede have wisely sidestepped any 21st-century tropes which would have diluted their approach. They stick to their specialties here. ... One of the best records of their career.

The work here is as intricate as it is impassioned, with neither form nor feeling sacrificed as Ejstes builds a multidimensional musical world. Whether or not you’re familiar with Dungen’s previous work, this is a phenomenal display of their collective skill and penchant for a rich and genre-bending atmosphere.

Sheff’s distinct voice gives any of his projects a certain feel, but this record, created through much collaboration, sounds relaxed even if it mostly sticks to precise recording.

¡Ay! tugs the music and language of Colombia out of its natural space, allowing Dalt to beckon traditions across oceans and, along the way, provide established melodies and rhythms new spaces to inhabit.

Concepts like “consistency” and “quality” are relative, but a new album from Robyn Hitchcock is always good for a grand reminder of what is truly “great”, and Shufflemania! is no exception.

Under the Midnight Sun sits somewhere below their most essential albums while looking down on their more awkward moments.

Stumpwork isn’t easily decoded on the first listen. John Parish’s production work needs some getting used to, particularly in how he treats Shaw’s vocals with a certain tinny harshness even as he pushes them to the front of the mix. Even outside of that, Dry Cleaning are still playing 1980s-era indie and languors in obtuse sprechgesang. But also like New Long Leg, Stumpwork is worthy of inhabiting completely and capable of rewarding multiple listens.

Despite a more liberal use of string sections this time out, Funny sounds like another album made by the 1975.

Sparke clearly had a dedicated goal with this record: capture the confusing and fluctuating feelings inside of her and linger in them without analysis or explanation. Hysteria’s consistent sound arises organically out of that project, and your appreciation for it is contingent on your willingness to engage with that project in the first place.

Dirt Femme is one of Tove Lo’s strongest collection of songs yet, and the acoustic fingerpicking collaboration “Cute & Cruel” with First Aid Kit shows the different directions Lo can take her sound. Unfortunately, tracks like the by-the-numbers ballad “I’m to Blame” and the less-insightful-than-it-thinks dance cut “Attention Whore” get lumped in on the album’s back half, as they somewhat pull down the otherwise stellar material presented.

The more-is-more nature of Typical Music may be a mixed blessing, but Burgess’ and the album’s biggest gift is a generosity of spirit.

Across these eight tracks, Yeah Yeah Yeahs mix big moments and simple softness, playing with tone and dynamics to develop tension, release, and steady propulsion. It’s kinetic energy that might not have been evident during that decade the band members focused on other projects, but it’s one that shows no sign of friction.

Because the formula is so well-tested, Empire Central is at its most satisfying when avoiding Snarky Puppy’s full-group sound.

For all of Blount’s intelligence on the record, it might be this heart that comes through strongest.

The Bad Plus makes a convincing case for the new lineup and puts the quartet’s vitality on full display, shrugging away any notions that the Bad Plus are past their prime. Whether you view this as a new group or not, the results are equally as compelling. They didn’t really need it to, but the Bad Plus got themselves a new lease.

While its taunt, clipped patterns, and track brevity likely make it the most accessible record he’s made, it shows an artist capable of profound yet unhurried growth.

While the sense of concerted effort from Pixies rarely lets up, few of these songs make a lasting impression.

Was this brand of metal ever designed to be this safe—especially in a climate where the music’s apocalyptic scenarios have come to life? For better or worse, The Sick, the Dying… and the Dead! reveals its charms more the more you ignore that question.

I Love You Jennifer B is provocative and ambitious, testing attention while operating on a fine line between listenability and overkill. The way Jockstrap play with expectations keeps listeners on their toes. Trying to anticipate the next 180-degree turn or sudden zero to a hundred acceleration makes them an exciting listen.

It’s not too late to learn how to stretch your attention span around these three hours of music because there are moments that absolutely soar. Patience isn’t a virtue here; it’s a requirement.

The drifting nature of Weather Alive‘s songs may not be as immediately satisfying as the bright-eyed folk-pop she flirted with in her earlier years. Still, this album unabashedly feels like the record she needed to make now, and we all feel more Alive because of it.

Joe Strummer 002: The Mescaleros Years gets to the heart of this matter comprehensively, dishing up all three albums and a modest peek behind the curtain. The packaging is lovely, and the Mescaleros never made a bad album.

On As Above, So Below, just as on The Return, she makes music with incredible clarity of purpose and affirms a sense of interconnected self and heritage that makes her writing, arranging, sampling, and guest list all the more compelling. Sampa is soaring, and she’s not afraid to let everyone know.

While Combs does not offer us mantras to soothe our souls, the songs function similarly to the chants by keeping the lessons simple and largely without distracting ornamentation.

Asphalt Meadows is neither a nostalgic rehash of earlier heights nor a workmanlike product lacking innovation or novelty. It is instead a statement that this band can both occupy space in the indie rock pantheon while at the same time producing new work deserving of consideration with some of their finest early work.