Dirty Pretty Things - Romance at Short Notice
On Romance at Short Notice, Carl Barat and the rest of Dirty Pretty Things seem all too happy to move on from the Libertines-ish guitar pop of their debut Waterloo to anywhere. While they succeed at sounding very different than they did before, spanning punk-funk to whispery acoustic ballads, they also end up sounding like several different bands over the course of the album. Track for track, the band does some interesting things on Romance at Short Notice, but it doesn’t really hold together as a cohesive set of songs.

The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
With Stay Positive, the Hold Steady’s second album for Vagrant, they want you to know they’ve “arrived” and just may become one of the most popular bands in the country. The sonic transition from banner waving, garage punk scenesters with heady aspirations, to full blown slick rock band, one wonders if being an arena rock band –albeit one with earthy lyrics and catchy melodies–wasn’t their desire all along.

Nas - Nas
Nas uses the “N” word as a mere jumping-off point for his self-titled album. It’s his most purposeful album; nearly every verse goes beyond talking trash and recalling exploits to address the change of his album’s title, the “N” word, race relations, stereotypes, the long arms and legs of Fox, love for his people and country, and the United States from slave ships through the possibility of a black president. The MC has never made an album as engrossing or as necessary as this one.

Bajofondo - Mar Dulce
Don Braden - Gentle Storm
Daedelus - Love to Make Music To
Foreigner - No End in Sight: The Very Best of Foreigner
Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons - The Motown Years
Delta Goodrem - Delta
Gossip - Rework It
The Grascals - Keep on Walkin’
Honeybus - Story
The Imagined Village - The Imagined Village
Jet Black Stare - In This Life
John Mellencamp - Life Death Love and Freedom
The Music - Strength in Numbers
Rehab - Graffiti the World (Universal Republic)
Randy Travis - Around the Bend
Twilight Sad - Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did
Unkle - End Titles: Stories for Film
Cedar Walton - Seasoned Wood
Wild Beasts - Limbo, Panto
Ace Young - Ace Young
Original Soundtrack - American Teen
Original Soundtrack - The Dark Knight
Original Broadway Cast - Passing Strange (Original Broadway Cast)

Billy Joel - The Stranger (2CD Deluxe Edition)
Billy Joel’s 1977 blockbuster The Stranger is given a Legacy Edition treatment this week, as it is reissued as a double-disc set featuring a previously unreleased concert at Carnegie Hall and a triple-disc set that adds a DVD of vintage live performances to the equation.
 
 
Willie Nelson/Wynton Marsalis - Two Men with the Blues
Two Men With The Blues captures highlights from a two-night stand at Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2007 by Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson. The two musicians are ideal foils for each other, as they make music that’s lively, lovingly reverent, occasionally surprising and altogether delightful.
 
 
 
Abe Vigoda - Skeleton
Bad Religion - New Maps of Hell (Deluxe Version)
The Baseball Project - The Baseball Project, Vol. 1: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails
Black Ghosts - The Black Ghosts
The Capstan Shafts - Fixation Protocols
Chromeo - Fancy Footwork (Deluxe Edition)
Diplomats of Solid Sound - Diplomats of Solid Sound Featuring the Diplomettes
Donna the Buffalo - Silverlined
Jean Grae - Jeanius
Eddy Grant - The Very Best of Eddy Grant: The Road to Reparation
George Jones - Burning Your Playhouse Down
Kerli - Love Is Dead
Leila - Blood, Looms and Blooms
Little Jackie - The Stoop
Maroon 5 - It Won’t Be Soon Before Long (US Deluxe Edition)
Del McCoury - Moneyland
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes - Have Another Ball!
Melvins - Nude with Boots
Mighty Mighty Bosstones - Medium Rare
Mika Miko - 666
Opiate for the Masses - Manifesto
Johnny Osbourne - Truths and Rights (Deluxe Edition)
Ratatat - LP3
Ron Sexsmith - Exit Strategy of the Soul
Patti Smith/Kevin Shields - The Coral Sea
Son, Ambulance - Someone Else’s Déjà Vu
Street Dogs - State of Grace
Sunny Day Sets Fire - Summer Palace
Telepathic Butterflies - Breakfast in Suburbia
Vancougar - Canadian Tuxedo
Doc Watson - Americana Master Series: Best of Doc Watson
Whitechapel - This Is Exile
Saul Williams - The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust
Edgar Winter - Rebel Road
Various Artists - Life Beyond Mars: Bowie Covered
Original Soundtrack - Weeds: Music from the Series, Vol. 3

Earlimart - Hymn and Her
After taking three years to create 2007’s Mentor Tormentor, Earlimart whipped through Hymn and Her in a quick 12 months. But don’t expect such a speedy approach to replace quality songwriting; bandmates Aaron Espinoza and Ariana Murray have simply tightened their grip on lush, textured indie pop, which lends focus and mellow immediacy to this record.
 
 
G-Unit - T.O.S.: Terminate on Sight
Five years in the making, G-Unit’s sophomore release arrives just as the crew’s leader 50 Cent and former member Young Buck are going through a very public breakup. Five Buck tracks — all recorded before things went sour — appear on the final product, but you may also notice the Dr. Dre, Eminem, and Lil’ Kim collaborations that were once promised are absent. Even with the difficult birthing process, T.O.S. ends up strong album thanks to 50 and his henchmen — Lloyd Banks plus Tony Yayo – being in top form.

Vanessa Hudgens - Identified
Disney started positioning Vanessa Hudgens for her post-High School Musical while the franchise was still going strong, giving her a slightly more mature sound on her albums than standard Radio Disney fare. Her second album, Identified, isn’t radically different than her debut, V, but its savvy production – courtesy of sound-shapers like Kasz Money’s Doctor Luke, Benny Blanco, and J.R. Rotem, makes the album more playful and listenable than it strictly has to be, and gives Hudgens a fighting chance to stay relevant to her fans once they outgrow their Disney years.

John Mayer - Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles
Recorded live at the Nokia Theatre, Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles finds the singer-songwriter/blues guitarist performing in three different musical settings: acoustic trio, electric trio and large ensemble. The result is an ambitious showcase for Mayer who never fails to shine.
 
 
C-Murder - Screamin’ 4 Vengeance
Johnny Cash - Original Greatest Hits
Culture - Culture and Deejays at Joe Gibbs: 1977-1979
Girlicious - Girlicious
James Harman - Two Sides to Every Story
Jim Jones & Byrd Gang - M.O.B.: The Album
Los Lonely Boys - Forgiven
Van Morrison - Veedon Fleece (Bonus Tracks)
My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade Is Dead!
Willie Nelson - Stardust: 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition
Tickle Me Pink - Madeline (CD/DVD)

Alejandro Escovedo - Real Animal
Alejandro Escovedo’s ambitious 2006 album The Boxing Mirror was recorded as Escovedo was recovering from a near-fatal bout with Hepatitis C. 2008’s Real Animal is a leaner, more tightly focused session; in fact, this is the strongest rock album Escovedo has made since his 1997 album with Buick MacKane. If The Boxing Mirror was a work influenced by the shadow of mortality, Real Animal is an album about life — both as survival and as the faces and moments that fill our days on this Earth.

Sigur Rós - Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust
With their fifth full-length album, Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust (translated as With a Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly), Sigur Rós have taken the poppy, sunshine-y leanings of their previous album a step further into the light. The result is a leaner, more direct sound that has plenty of emotional impact, and an album that stands alongside their finest work to date.
 
Three 6 Mafia - Last 2 Walk
After its street date was pushed back for over a year, Three 6 Mafia’s follow-up to the multi-platinum Most Known Unknown finally arrives and three of the pre-release singles are missing. Plus, the group has shrunk down to a duo – DJ Paul and Juicy J – so if you’re thinking Last 2 Walk sounds like a troubled and maybe even forced album, you’re right on both counts. It’s uneven, but the best tracks are welcome reminders of the group’s early days.

The Anniversary - Devil on Our Side: B-Sides and Rarities
Babyshambles - Oh What a Lovely Tour(CD/DVD)
Jessie Baylin - Firesight
Be Your Own Pet - Get Damaged
Big Blue Ball - Big Blue Ball
Big Brother & the Holding Company - The Lost Tapes
Paul Bley - About Time
Blondie - Parallel Lines (CD/DVD)
Cajun Dance Party - The Colourful Life
Camper Van Beethoven - Popular Songs of Great Enduring Strength and Beauty
Mark Chesnutt - Rollin’ with the Flow
Cute Is What We Aim For - Rotation
Eric Darius - Goin’ All Out
Anthony David - Acey Duecy
Dwele - Sketches of a Man
Elephant9 - Dodovoodoo
G. Love & Special Sauce - Superhero Brother
The Grip Weeds - Infinite Soul: The Best of the Grip Weeds
Hercules & Love Affair - Hercules & Love Affair
Warren Hill - La Dolce Vita
Billy Idol - The Very Best of Billy Idol: Idolize Yourself
Amos Lee - Last Days at the Lodge
P.W. Long - God Bless the Drunkard’s Dog
Love as Laughter - Holy
Edwin McCain - Nobody’s Fault But Mine
Mötley Crüe - Saints of Los Angeles
Thomas Newman - WALL·E (Original Score)
Nurse with Wound - Huffin’ Rag Blues
Danny Paisley & the Southern Grass - The Room Over Mine
Liz Phair - Exile in Guyville (Deluxe Edition)
Jay Reatard - Singles 06-07
Reckless Kelly - Bulletproof
Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog - Party Intellectuals
RZA as Bobby Digital - Digi Snacks
Shinedown - The Sound of Madness
Watermelon Slim & the Workers - No Paid Holidays
The Watson Twins - Fire Songs
Various Artists - Eccentric Soul: The Tragar & Note Labels
Original Soundtrack - The Wackness

Katy Perry - One of the Boys
Internet sensation Katy Perry pulls out all the stops on her debut album One of the Boys. Working with an impressive murder’s row of producers and songwriters (Desmond Child, Glen Ballard and Dave Stewart to name a few) and running through a list of subjects designed to gain attention (belched alphabets, fruity boyfriends, Vegas hangovers, and lesbian lip-locks), One of the Boys aims to be a gender-bending work of meta-pop but ends up instead as a pandering, calculated train wreck of an album.

Silver Jews - Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea
Three years after what was probably the Silver Jews’ darkest album, David Berman and company return with Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea, which may very well be the band’s lightest work. That’s on the surface, anyway; these songs about candy jails, party barges and Old San Francisco are lighthearted, but they reveal deeper shades of meaning – and Berman’s typically brilliant yet inviting way with words – on repeated listens.

Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue (Legacy Edition)
When Dennis Wilson’s solo debut, Pacific Ocean Blue, was released in 1977, few had high expectations for it. Dennis’ brother Brian Wilson was, after all, the acknowledged genius and mastermind of the Beach Boys sound and his other brother Carl Wilson had THE voice, so little was expected of Dennis, the pretty boy drummer and near-professional party animal. But Pacific Ocean Blue turned out to be a gorgeous masterpiece, full of a naked, affirming spirit and worlds past and beyond what any of the other Beach Boys were doing at the time. It was also, perhaps not surprisingly, a resounding commercial flop, although critical reaction to the album was strong and positive. With the release of a definitive two-disc set that features a remastered version of the original LP and collects the remnants of the unfinished follow-up album, Bambu, along with other solo odds and en! ds, a convincing case can be made that Dennis Wilson was the other bona fide musical genius in the Beach Boys.

Wolf Parade - At Mount Zoomer
After a slew of disappointing follow-ups by great indie hopes, Wolf Parade returns with an album that’s even better than their first. Driven by the songwriting power of Spencer King and Dan Boeckner, At Mount Zoomer finds the band sounding tighter, more confident and more mature than they did on Apologies to the Queen Mary. Even if this album doesn’t have the immediate hits of their debut, Wolf Parade proves that they’re in it for the long haul here.

Adem - Takes
Blood Raw - My Life the True Testimony
David Bowie - Live in Santa Monica ‘72
Chicago - Stone of Sisyphus: XXXII
Jason Falkner - Bedtime with the Beatles, Vol. 2
From Autumn to Ashes - Live at Looney Tunes
Kathy Griffin - For Your Consideration
Kelly Harland - Long Ago and Far Away: Kelly Harland Sings Jerome Kern
Rebecca Lynn Howard - No Rules
Mick Hucknall - Tribute to Bobby (CD/DVD)
Jersey Babys - Jersey Babys: The Music of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons for Kids
Judas Priest - Nostradamus
King Khan & the Shrines - The Supreme Genius of King Khan & the Shrines
Gladys Knight & the Pips - Claudine/Pipe Dreams
Chanté Moore - Love the Woman
My Brightest Diamond - A Thousand Shark’s Teeth
NOMO - Ghost Rock
The Notwist - The Devil, You + Me
The Offspring - Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
Ponytail - Ice Cream Spiritual!
Prima J - Prima J
Trevor Rabin - Get Smart (2008 Score)
Reggie and the Full Effect - Last Stop: Crappy Town
Rehab - Sittin’ at a Bar
Rihanna - Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded
Diana Ross - Everything Is Everything (Bonus Tracks)
Sebadoh - Bubble & Scrape
Teddy Thompson - A Piece of What You Need
Tilly and the Wall - O
2 Pistols - Death Before Dishonor
Dan Tyminski - Wheels
The War on Drugs - Wagonwheel Blues

Jakob Dylan - Seeing Things
Jakob Dylan steps away from the Wallflowers with his first solo album, Seeing Things. Produced by Rick Rubin, it’s a quiet, subdued affair, but it’s not gloomy — it’s warm and reflective, a good showcase for Dylan’s sturdy, understated writing.
 
 

The Fratellis - Here We Stand
On their second album Here We Stand, the Fratellis step out of the pub to smooth the edges off their songs and clean up their sound. Where their debut was effortless fun, this set of songs sounds like the band worked hard on them – which often ends up working against their natural devil-may-care instincts. Still, the Fratellis’ irrepressible charm prevails enough of the time that fans of Costello Music should find quite a bit to enjoy here.

Emmylou Harris - All I Intended to Be
All I Intended to Be, Emmylou Harris’ first new release in five years, finds her reaching back toward a sound and style that recall the country and folk influences of her earlier work. But All I Intended to Be is clearly the work of an artist who is looking to the past entirely on her own terms, and with the lessons learned since 1995’s spectral Wrecking Ball clearly audible at all times.

Joan as Policewoman - To Survive
Joan as Police Woman’s debut album Real Life was a major statement, filled a lifetime’s worth of catharsis. To Survive is content to cover matters of day-to-day life, rather than matters of life and death, but does so with the same effortless elegance that made Real Life so moving. Rebirth, gratitude and the yin-yang of love and loneliness are the major themes here, all delivered with Joan Wasser’s intense but thoughtful words and melodies.

Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III
Filled with bold, entertaining wordplay and plenty of well-executed, left-field ideas, Tha Carter III should be considered as a wild, somewhat difficult child of Weezy’s magnum opus in motion, one that allows the listener an exhilarating and unapologetic taste of artistic freedom.
 
 
 
Alanis Morissette - Flavors of Entanglement
Flavors of Entanglement is Alanis Morissette’s first record since her split from fiance Ryan Reynolds, and that breakup can be heard throughout this album — but that doesn’t mean this is Jagged Little Pill, Pt. 2. Thanks to producer Guy Sigsworth — known for his collaborations with Bjork — this bears shades of word music and electronica, and the songs are elliptical, making this closer to Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie than her diamond-selling blockbuster.

My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges
My Morning Jacket’s Evil Urges embraces Prince, prog rock, and even electro-funk, blending those new arrivals with the band’s steady approach to southern rock. For those fans who criticized the adventurous sounds of 2005’s Z, Evil Urges will sound every bit as sinful as its title. But My Morning Jacket shows an admirable willingness to experiment with these fourteen tracks, and there are enough synth-free rock songs in the setlist to satisfy even the most fickle listeners.

Adele - 19 (Bonus CD)
Afroman - Greatest Hitz Live
Priscilla Ahn - A Good Day
The Bangkok Five - We Love What Kills Us
The Beach Boys - US Singles Collection Box: The Capitol Years 1962-1965
Haley Bonar - Big Star
The Boxmasters - The Boxmasters
The Bridges - Limits of the Sky
Solomon Burke - Like a Fire
The Charlatans UK - You Cross My Path (Deluxe Edition)
Gene Clark - Silverado ‘75: Live & Unreleased
Crusaders - Live in Japan 2003
Gas - Nah und Fern
Jeff Gauthier - House of Return
Guillemots - Red
Hil St. Soul - Black Rose
Hiromi - Beyond Standard
Freddie Hubbard - On the Real Side (70th Birthday Celebration)
James Hunter - The Hard Way
The Infamous Stringdusters - The Infamous Stringdusters
Ahmad Jamal - It’s Magic
KRS-One - Maximum Strength
Patti LaBelle - The Essential Patti LaBelle
Patti LaBelle - Live in Washington D.C.
Love - Out There
Love - False Start
Janiva Magness - What Love Will Do
Manfred Mann - The Hit Man: Essential Singles 1963-1969
Sergio Mendes - Encanto
Montgomery Gentry - Back When I Knew It All
N.E.R.D. - Seeing Sounds
Carla Olson & Mick Taylor - Too Hot for Snakes
Carla Olson & the Textones - Detroit 85: Live and Unreleased
The Orb - The Dream
Pentemple - 0))) Presents…
Plies - Definition of Real
Ponies in the Surf - See You Happy
Rev Theory - Light It Up
The Runaways - The Runaways/Queens of Noise
Sloan - Parallel Play
Sparks - Exotic Creatures of the Deep
Mark Stewart - Edit
Styrofoam - A Thousand Words
Supergrass - Diamond Hoo Ha
Chip Taylor - New Songs of Freedom
Tyga - No Introduction
Martha Wainwright - I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too
Shannon Walker - Shannon Walker
Tony Joe White - Deep Cuts
Cassandra Wilson - Loverly
Roy Wood - Wizzard Brew (Bonus Tracks)
Dan Zanes - Nueva York!
Various Artists - Cash Money Records: 10 Years of Bling, Vol. 2
Original TV Soundtrack - iCarly: Music from and Inspired by the Hit TV Show

The Futureheads - This Is Not the World
After the mature, introspective territory of News & Tributes, the Futureheads go in the opposite direction on This is Not the World, streamlining and polishing their songs so much that they’re far more straightforward than any of their previous work. At times, they almost sound too simplified – especially compared to all the harmonies, quick tempo changes, and razor-sharp riffs they crammed into their first two albums – but when This is Not the World connects, it makes an indelibly catchy impact.

Jewel - Perfectly Clear
Perfectly Clear finds Jewel — who only five years ago was making like Britney — turning herself into a country singer with the assistance of producer John Rich, best known as half of Big & Rich. It sounds like an extreme makeover but it’s not, as the country form focuses her, helping her deliver concise, pretty poppy tunes that are reminiscent of her hit debut Pieces of You.

Ladytron - Velocifero
On Velocifero, Ladytron sounds as aloof, glamorous, sinister and bittersweet as ever, crafting dark-yet-sparkling electronic pop that takes on a bit of an industrial edge thanks to collaborator Alessandro Cortini, formerly of Nine Inch Nails. Though Ladytron doesn’t really make a big step forward with their sound on this album – a first for them – Velocifero won’t disappoint fans.

Aimee Mann - @#%&*! Smilers
Unlike The Forgotten Arm, Aimee Mann’s @#%&! Smilers isn’t a concept album, it’s a simple collection of songs. Together, they play more like a pop album than a singer/songwriter record, as the production is brighter and fuller than most recent Mann records, but the songs remain exquisitely crafted and benefit from some healthy cynicism, the same kind that surfaces in the censored profanity of the title.

Radiohead - The Best Of
2008 might have been a slightly early point in time to release expanded editions of the first several Radiohead albums, so Capitol greased the reissue pipeline with The Best Of, a 17-track disc with a track list that is as debatable as any other. The disc does cover just about all of the basics: all the singles and emphasis tracks, from Pablo Honey’s “Creep” through Hail to the Thief’s “2+2=5,” along with a small assortment of the band’s better-known album cuts.

Gavin Rossdale - Wanderlust
Scared by the lack of success of his post-Bush outfit Institute, Gavin Rossdale relies on his own name for WANDERlust. He also abandons the hard, churning guitars that have been his stock in trade since the days of MTV’s Buzz Band, opting for a smooth AAA adult-pop designed to appeal to listeners who know him as the hot husband of Gwen Stefani from reading US Weekly.

Weezer - Weezer (Red Album)
Like the two eponymous color-coded albums that precede it, Weezer’s The Red Album serves as a point of reintroduction as the band has decided to shake things up in the wake of the oversized, highly buffed Make Believe. Every one of the guys takes lead vocals on a song, while Rivers Cuomo serves up some of his catchiest and funniest pop songs in a while and, in the suite “The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived,” one of his weirdest, all adding up to pretty infectious restatement of purpose for Weezer.

Ashanti - The Declaration
Bitter:Sweet - Drama
Chris Brown - Exclusive: The Forever Edition
Disturbed - Indestructible
Dr. John and the Lower 911 - City That Care Forgot
Harvey Milk - Life…The Best Game in Town
Lalah Hathaway - Self Portrait
Jaguar Love - Jaguar Love EP
Brendan James - The Day Is Brave
Keith Jarrett - Somewhere Before: The Atlantic Years 1968-1975
JoBoxers - Doing the Boxerbeat
John 5 - Requiem
Elton John - Tumbleweed Connection (Deluxe Edition) (Bonus Tracks)
Elton John - Elton John (Deluxe Edition)
John Legend - Live from Philadelphia
The M’s - Real Close Ones
Man Raze - Surreal
Matmos - California Rhinoplasty EP
John Mayall - Live at the Marquee 1969 (Special Edition)
John Mayall - The Masters (Special Edition)
Neal McCoy - The Very Best of Neal McCoy
Bret Michaels - Rock My World
Opeth - Watershed
Oppenheimer - Take the Whole Midrange and Boost It
Pinetop Perkins & Friends - Pinetop Perkins
Saxophone Summit - Saxophone Summit: Seraphic Light
Shearwater - Rook
Nina Simone - Tell It Like It Is
Subtle - Exiting Arm
Art Tatum - Piano Starts Here: Live at the Shrine/Zenph Re-Performance
Thank You - Terrible Two
The Ting Tings - We Started Nothing
Wayman Tisdale - Rebound
The Traveling Wilburys - Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 1
The Traveling Wilburys - The Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 3
Amy Winehouse - Frank (The Super Deluxe Edition US)
The Zombies - The Zombies and Beyond
Various Artists - The Jewish Songbook: The Heart & Humor of a People
Original Soundtrack - Kung Fu Panda (Original Soundtrack)
Various Artists - Malt Shop Memories (Box Set)
Various Artists - Wizards & Demons: Music Inspired by the Writings of J.R.R. Tolkien

Foxboro Hot Tubs - Stop Drop and Roll!!!
Faced with the daunting prospect of following up American Idiot Green Day decided to skirt the question and masquerade as a garage rock outfit called Foxboro Hot Tubs. Their debut album Stop, Drop and Roll!!! looks like a ’60s rock & roll LP, from it’s kitschy cover to its deliberate rewrites of the Kinks, the Yardbirds and Who classics. By reveling in revivalism, Green Day sound recharged — they haven’t been this much fun in years.
 
Scarlett Johansson - Anywhere I Lay My Head
Just the mere description of Scarlett Johansson singing an album of Tom Waits songs seems odd enough but the resulting album Anywhere I Lay My Head is even stranger than it sounds. Teaming with TV On The Radio’s Dave Sitek, Scarlett picks latter-day Waits tunes and then gives them a hazy dream-pop makeover. The sound is unmistakably Sitek’s and her voice is striking and distinctive, making for intriguing music even if the two sides don’t quite mesh.
 
Mudhoney - Superfuzz Bigmuff (Deluxe Edition)
If Mudhoney’s Superfuzz Bigmuff wasn’t the first shot fired in the battle to bring “The Seattle Sound” to the four corners of the world, it was the first one that well and truly hit the target. Sub Pop celebrates the twentieth birthday of Mudhoney’s debut 12″ with a “Deluxe Edition” that expands the EP’s lineup from six to thirty-two songs.
 
The Wedding Present - El Rey
The Wedding Present and Steve Albini worked together in 1991 to create the group’s most powerful and emotionally harrowing album, Seamonsters. The stakes aren’t as high on El Rey but the combination works well again as the album sounds great and the band’s trademark brutal honesty, hard-won wisdom, and first-rate songcraft are fully intact.
 

Amon Düül II - Hijack
Billy Boy Arnold - Billy Boy Sings Sonny Boy
Bobby Bare - Singin’ in the Kitchen
Beatallica - All You Need Is Blood
Bun B - II Trill
Bobby Charles - Homemade Songs
The Dresden Dolls - No, Virginia…
The Explorers Club - Freedom Wind
Felix da Housecat - Global Underground: Milan
Flobots - Fight with Tools
French Kicks - Swimming
Nelly Furtado - Whoa, Nelly! (Special Edition) (2 Discs)
Judy Garland - Judy Takes Broadway! With Friends
General Echo - Teacher Fe di Class 1979-1980
Good Shoes - Think Before You Speak
Julianne Hough - Julianne Hough
Islands - Arm’s Way
Jeremy Jay - A Place Where We Could Go
Joan of Arc - Boo! Human
George Jones - George Jones: The Hits - Then Till Now
King’s X - XV
Mates of State - Re-Arrange Us
Jesse McCartney - Departure
Pat Metheny - Day Trip Live
Mudhoney - The Lucky Ones
Rosa Passos - Romance
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Greatest Hits (Bonus Track)
Michael Rose/Admiral Tibet - Fire Fire Burning
Esperanza Spalding - Esperanza
Donna Summer - Crayons
3 Doors Down - 3 Doors Down
Abigail Washburn - Abigail Washburn & the Sparrow Quartet
Windsor for the Derby - How We Lost
The Yellowjackets - Lifecycle
Original Score - Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Score)

Duffy - Rockferry
Those tempted to dismiss Duffy as only the latest pair of false eyelashes to straggle through the British neo-soul parade owe it to themselves to listen to Rockferry, a more authentic record than the debuts from Joss Stone or Amy Winehouse.
 
 
 
Jason Mraz - We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things
On We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things, Jason Mraz makes a smooth transition to blue-eyed soul crooner. He hasn’t abandoned his fratty folk — there’s a long duet with James Morrison — but most of this record rides sleek grooves that are almost seductive enough to camouflage his scatting and occasional smutty joke.

Old 97’s - Blame It on Gravity (Deluxe)
After fifteen years of barroom rock & roll, the Old 97’s continue to occupy the intersection between dusty country-rock and pop. Blame it on Gravity is their seventh studio effort, and its mix of rock songs, ballads, and mid-tempo shufflers results in some of the quartet’s best work since Too Far To Care. Listen to the breezy “She Loves the Sunset” to hear Rhett Miller stretch his songwriting legs, or get your classic Old 97’s fix with the album’s full-tilt opening track.

Abysmal Dawn - Programmed to Consume
Botticellis - Old Home Movies
Cleo Brown - Complete Recorded Works
Foxy Brown - Brooklyn’s Don Diva
Ryan Cabrera - The Moon Under Water
Patsy Cline - Stop, Look and Listen (Bear Family)
Arthur Conley - Soul Directions
Arthur Conley - More Sweet Soul
Robert Cray - Live at the BBC
Dokken - Lightning Strikes Again
Dave Douglas & Keystone - Moonshine
The Feeling - Join with Us
Fern Knight - Fern Knight
Bill Frisell - History, Mystery
Jools Holland - Best of Friends (CD/DVD)
Lars Hollmer - Viandra
Iron Maiden - Somewhere Back in Time: The Best of 1980-1989
Local H - 12 Angry Months
Mason Proffit - Come & Gone
John Miles - Zaragon
Mink DeVille - Where Angels Fear to Tread
Osborne - Osborne
Plantlife - Time Traveller
Quiet Village - Silent Movie
Duke Robillard - A Swingin Session with Duke Robillard
Sahib Shihab - Complete Sextets Sessions: 1956-1957
Frank Sinatra - Nothing But the Best (Capitol)
The Submarines - Honeysuckle Weeks
10cc - …Meanwhile
10cc - Look Hear?
10cc - Food For Thought
10cc - Live and Let Live
Rufus Thomas - Tiger Man: Earliest Recordings 1950-1957
Hayden Thompson - Rockabilly Gal: The Sun Years Plus
Tindersticks - The Hungry Saw
Gene Vincent - A Million Shades of Blue
We Are Scientists - Brain Thrust Mastery
Young and Sexy - The Arc