Nile delivers one of his finest and most passionate projects with American Ride.

The Day The Earth Stood Still easily measures up to every one of Nile’s preceding efforts—taut, tough, and tenacious, and driven by sheer grit and gravitas, as well as passion and purpose.

The Suburbs ends on a dark, dystopian note with a little 90-second deconstruction of the title track, leaving you to wonder if the "screaming" alluded to earlier might not always be the joyful kind. That kind of ambiguity is what makes Arcade Fire's deceptively simple music all the more intriguing.

All in all, it’s a sumptuous box set and one that’s mined with obvious depth and devotion.

Rejoice in the music of Beggars Banquet that sounds as vital today as when it was released five decades ago. But unless you’ve got money to burn, it’s best to stick with the existing versions of one of the Rolling Stones’ most immersive and enduring works.

While some may complain about the ballad vibe that envelopes most of these ten tunes, there’s no doubt that The Secret Sisters, and their famed production and musical support team, have tapped into a well, secret sauce that makes this beautifully conceived, often introspective but never insular rootsy folk and pop so unique and immediately likeable.

From an Old Guitar may be a stop-gap release during the pandemic, but it’s also a consistently enlightening and even inspirational listening experience.

22, A Million occasionally confronts and challenges with its willful weirdness, but Bon Iver can still locate that lonely cabin, if only in spirit, when Vernon really wants to dig deep.

This may be a side project or a one-off, except in many ways the sum exceeds the (very distinguished) parts in terms of emotional effect.

Beautifully-balanced and well-paced.

Since PJ Harvey is a veteran artist who, in her 20-year career, has yet to either make a bad record or repeat herself, to call her latest, Let England Shake, one of her strongest efforts to date is a bold statement, but it's true--this a brilliant record by an artist impervious to aging.

At its best, it’s a reasonable recap of their strengths kicked up a few notches for the small stage they hadn’t played in far too long with a tight band and generally stripped down (no horns, backing singers) lineup featuring then new guy Ron Wood. Those looking for “satisfaction” won’t hear that tune but will get gratification from the majority of this long sought-after audio document.

Remind Me Tomorrow actually does take a less-is-more tack in terms of its lyrics. Yet this album manages to be striking even when the words are minimized or backgrounded. Van Etten may be transforming, but she’s still triumphing.

This dream of an album sounds like little else currently in the pop field, and the fact that it’s a debut from a relative newcomer makes it even more impressive.

The performance careens from tight, frantic and professional to shambling, erratic and wobbly... basically your typical Replacements show. In that respect, this is historically important since it finds the group at arguably their most incisive and edgy.

Are We There is definitely an album that will reveal itself to you with closer attention and multiple listens, as opposed to Tramp, which was a little catchier with its obsessions right from the get-go.

Bon Iver is a marvel.

It’s intimate and sprawling, personal and universal, affectionate and daring.

Third time the charm? Based on the shimmering Mint Condition, it deserves to be.

On The Hypnogogue, the quintet creates fluid moods, moving in idiosyncratic directions while maintaining the shadowy gaze that has defined The Church’s style. Still, a few more songs like the relatively pop-oriented “C’est La Vie” would help elevate and energize the album by varying its consistency.

Mitchell put a permanent stamp of approval on her already sparkling reputation with the gorgeous and striving Young Man In America.

Naturally, Dylan aficionados will likely view this once again as part of a holy grail, but even the casual collector may see the need to add this to their collection. Springtime In New York could be considered one of the richest seasons of all.

Both as a songwriter and as a performer, Laura Marling has never soared so majestically.

Familiar but undeniably brand new, Halcyon Digest is forty-six minutes well spent--a loop that can repeated as many times as you'd like. Stay patient. If you skip out on a track, you'll be missing something.

A welcome if particularly edgy comeback that positions the album as Cook’s finest, most riveting and intensely personal work.

It’s an excellent way for new fans to have a pure entryway to their music, and the only possible appetizer before diving into the extras that come next: some an acquired taste, some amazing snapshots in time and some quirky bits that will probably only get a nostalgic spin or two.

It’s a fine line between revival and parody, and he walks it well, cowboy boots and all.

Lambert’s new record is a challenging statement from one of the very few female singers that has a stage to be widely heard. That her statement manages to weave together nuanced humor and sarcastic wit with huge pop hooks only makes it that much more impressive.