Here’s a rundown of the essential albums available online and in record stores today:
The Mars Volta, Octahedron
Duo reinjects soulful noise into interstellar freakouts.
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Gossip, Music for Men
Glad-to-be-gay punks majorly bummed on amour.
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Regina Spektor, Far
Off-kilter diva composes entrancing beach soundtrack.
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Dinosaur Jr., Farm
Classic freak scenesters re-create fiery golden days.
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Tortoise, Beacons of Ancestorship
Beware: your godforsaken genres not welcome here.
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Sunset Rubdown, Dragonslayer
Lupine side project sprawls with renewed intensity.
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God Help the Girl, God Help the Girl
His Royal Tweeness lets the ladies speak for him.
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Future of the Left, Travels With Myself and Another
Pissed-off punk pros jabber, jape, and jolt.
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The Lemonheads, Varshons
GG finally meets X-tina: What could have been!
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Patterson Hood, Murdering Oscar (and Other Love Songs)
Yarnspinning Trucker surveys the carnage.
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Sa-Ra Creative Partners, Nuclear Evolution: The Age of Love
Stymied R&B visionaries stunningly fulfill promise.
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Amazing Baby, Rewild
Psychedelic seekers find delights and decadence.
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Tom Brosseau, Posthumous Success
Crafty crooner slays with ambience and angst.
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Eugene McGuinness, Eugene McGuinness
Young Brit flashes acid tongue, weathered hooks.
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Pete Yorn, Back and Fourth
Hunk hires Bright Eyes guy. Why, exactly?
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>> Mars Volta on New Album: “It’s Mellow”
>> Q&A: The Gossip
>> First Listen: Dinosaur Jr.’s New Song
>> First Listen: Wolf Parade Side-Project Sunset Rubdown
>> Belle and Sebastian’s Murdoch Explains New Album
>> The Lemonheads Stay Sweet
>> Pete Yorn: Nightcrawler Supreme