Much has been made about the enigma that is Father John Misty's fifth album. It is a mystery that has persisted since the drop of the first single, “Funny Girl,” which came nearly four years after his previous album. As a lead single, “Funny Girl” did all the right things, sating our desire for new music from a favorite artist while also putting all the right questions in our heads. It's a beautiful, crooning ballad, old-fashioned at heart with a jazz orchestra to match, ... read more

Alt-J intrigue as always with their textures and soundscapes, but despite the business-as-usual feeling that settles in through most of this album, The Dream frequently teases the mind with thoughts of “this may be their weakest album yet” by the time that it's over. Many of the tracks feel emptier than we’ve come to expect from the band, with their often-inspired musical and lyrical ideas sometimes failing to crystalize into something that feels like a complete song. The ... read more

While this may not be Arcade Fire's most entertaining or even inspired album, what it does offer in terms of superlatives is perhaps the most perfect synthesis of the various sounds they have cultivated over the years. Sing-song indie and driving dance. Endearing acoustics and glittering synths. It feels like influences and tendencies melded into one perfect realization of the Arcade Fire sound, which I believe is a large part of what people are responding so positively to. It may be that this ... read more

WE ARE is an exuberant and joyful record that inspires much toe-tapping and the replaying of tracks. Songs like TELL THE TRUTH and I NEED YOU glisten with an energy and optimism that draws upon the power of positive-vibes-past to bring the musical brightness of decades past into our troubled present times. While there are some moments (few, but some) where Batiste still feels in development, this album is a showcase for all of the things that he is. Singer. Pianist. DJ. Arranger. Bandleader. ... read more

Each Song a Bleeding Heart
Julien Baker's "Little Oblivions" is like a gallery walk through her heartache. Her perfect indie sensibilities are married with a larger sense of production that expands her internal world outward to put it on display for all. There is uplift and catharsis in the arrangements, in the earnestness of her feeling. HARDLINE exemplifies all of that while launching the album with an eager burst. ZIPTIE closes the album with simple motifs and a sound that can best ... read more

Holy Fire is what emerged from the chrysalis of Total Life Forever. The previous album revealed a band in a state of becoming, a band that takes a few warm-up tracks to reveal and release their true strength and voice. Holy Fire takes no such time. More so than TLF, Holy Fire kicks off with the sense that the band knows exactly who they intend to be, how they intend to sound, what they intend to do. After a PRELUDE that becomes more of a premonition by album's end, the band unleashes INHALER, ... read more

Kings of Leon release an affable - if not ambitious - new LP. It's very listenable, with stand-out tracks here and there that catch the ear. In a time when it seems like we are on the other side of an Indie bubble that took the rock out of alternative, we get a track like THE BANDIT, a solid track with both feet in the rock genre. GOLDEN RESTLESS AGE, another highlight, sounds designed to best the indie charts, as Kings of Leon so often has.
Yet there also exists the sense, in a few of these ... read more

The Future is Not What It Used to Be
Total Life Forever is grand in its own right but is particularly fascinating as a retrospective on where Foals started. The first string of three songs sounds like the band still asleep. The production, the song-writing, Yannis's voice . . . as exciting as it is, it all sounds still in formation. Then "Black Gold" hits, and it feels like the album and the band have both come alive. The lush sonic textures that we have come to know from this band ... read more

Remarkably consistent and consistently high-energy, Dua Lipa shows us a vision of what modern pop albums should be like. This isn’t just hit radio singles with some filler In between. The life and charm promised by the singles is delivered throughout. The melodic ingenuity that made us first fall in love with her is back in full force and peak form to make us fall in love again.
Favorite Track: Hallucinate
Least Favorite Track: Good in Bed

AWOLNATION release an album that is bursting with energy, if not always creativity. At times the music here proves too simplistic for its own good. Not that we expected any intricate artistic statements from AWOLNATION. But, as expected, they DO deliver some new bangers that are truly fun to listen to.
Best Tracks: California Halo Blue, Half Italian
Weakest Track: Battered, Black & Blue

With Coming Home, Leon Bridges recreated the 50s jukebox; with Good Thing, the smooth-talking 60s. With the help of Khruangbin, he now pursues the mind-opening 70s. To sum up this micro-sized delight with a contemporary cliche, this EP is the perfect example of just vibin’. A nice curiosity in the discography of both artists.
Best Song: Texas Sun

Fetch the Bolt Cutters is challenging and unconventional, but nevertheless an astonishing creative effort. I approached this album without a single expectation, as someone who previously know only Fiona Apple's reputation and not her work. I instantly had to adjust and question my process for experiencing and rating albums. Do I listen to this album how I would a pop album, or a jazz album? Do I give extra points to a track for its creativity, even if I don't particularly enjoy what I am ... read more

An absolutely solid release that was worth the wait, The Slow Rush has one foot in the 1970s and one in the 2030s. The result is unique, groovy, and overall pleasant to listen to. There are moments of genuine inspiration, though there are some moments where I merely wait for the track to finish. The groove-nostalgia of this album is a true joy to listen to even in the tracks that feel less-inspired.
Favorite Track: Posthumous Forgiveness

Ed O'Brien releases a modest, passion-project of a debut solo album. The passion is evident, as is the talent, though the material is not quite substantial enough to create a fully-sturdy structure between the pillars of the singles. It opens with a two-track high that it never quite rises back to, though the final two tracks make a strong effort.
Best Track: Shangri-La

Brittany Howard leads us through a sonic tapestry of rock, soul, blues, and more with a masterfully musical and deeply personal musical statement. This album is a primary document of one musician's view of the world.r
Best Track: Short and Sweet

FKA twigs uses the avant-garde to transform pop into a darkly expressionistic reflection of inner turmoil that exists on an entirely different plane than most music.
Best Track: cellophane
Favorite Track: home with you

Nick Waterhouse creates an album that would be perfect for another decade. Unfortunately, it's the present and this album does not have the luxury of our nostalgia. He does a competent job of attracting our ears and our appreciation without addressing our need for freshness enough to stand out.
Best Track: I Feel an Urge Coming On
Listen If You Think You'd Like: to go to the sock hop

Taken altogether, the two parts of Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost make an incredible set of binary albums, unified by a refined, energetic, and exciting sound. Expansive rock soundscapes spawn from minimalistic musical figures. The minimalism that defines the musical style of these two albums is also perhaps what stands most in the way of Foals achieving the glorious work that ENSWBL aspires to be. The minimalist impulse seems to be confirmed by "Cafe D'Athens," which disrupts the ... read more

Taken altogether, the two parts of Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost make an incredible set of binary albums, unified by a refined, energetic, and exciting sound. Expansive rock soundscapes spawn from minimalistic musical figures. The minimalism that defines the musical style of these two albums is also perhaps what stands most in the way of Foals achieving the glorious work that ENSWBL aspires to be. The minimalist impulse seems to be confirmed by "Cafe D'Athens," which disrupts the ... read more

One of the year's most enchanting releases, Vagabon shows an artist on the rise, on the cusp of acclaim. There is a lot of music that falls into relaxing or "chill" genres these days, but Vagabon's more mellow moments are uniquely soothing, a trait not shared with much other music. It has officially been worked into my regular listening rotation, and Iook forward to keeping this album in my pocket as a balm against the world. Bring on the next album!
Best Track: Full Moon in Gemini