Ed Kowalczyk & co. return for their sixth album, produced by Jim Wirt (Incubus, Something Corporate).

The alt-metal band returns with a follow-up to their 2001 megahit, 'Break The Cycle.'

The Florida ska-punk band's third major-label release includes a cover of Cheap Trick's "Surrender."

This self-titled release is the fourth studio album for the California alt-metal outfit.

Named after a suburb of his native Sheffield, England, 'Lowedges' is the third solo release for the Pulp guitarist.

Joe Pernice and company return with ten new indie-pop gems.

Featuring guitarists named Rock and Roll Indian and Surge Joebot, the latest indie-rock sensation to come out of Detroit combines punk, new-wave and disco on this debut full-length. Included here is a new version of their hit single "Danger! High Voltage" with the White Stripes' Jack White on backing vocals.

The Chicago-based emo band returns with their fourth full-length.

Manson's fifth album finds the shock-rocker turning to the glory days of vaudeville and burlesque for inspiration.

The third album for the radio-friendly San Francisco-based alt-rockers is almost a concept album about breaking up with Charlize Theron, which--lest you think the band was getting wacky all of a sudden--band leader Stephan Jenkins actually did do recently.

Recording under his own name for the first time rather than his usual Third Eye Foundation (definitely not to be confused with Third Eye Blind), Bristol, England's Matt Elliott returns with a dark, moody collection of lo-fi, sample-based electronica.

The San Francisco rock band formerly known as VSS and then Slaves returns with a second album for Sub Pop in their current Pleasure Forever incarnation.

A veteran of such hip-hop acts as Stetsasonic and Handsome Boy Modeling School and producer of such legendary albums as De La Soul's '3 Feet High and Rising,' Prince Paul returns with his third solo release. Almost a meta-concept album, it is loosely based on Paul's dealings with his (former) record company regarding his previous release, the 1999 concept album 'A Prince Among Thieves.' Among the guests here are Chuck D, Erick Sermon and Ice-T.

This sophomore release for Minnesota-based turntablist/multi-instrumentalist Andrew Broder, like recent releases from "folktronica" artists such as Four Tet, utilizes organic sound samples, but mixes them with both indie rock elements (including some vocals) and shades of hip-hop.

This is the first solo album in over 10 years for the Echo & The Bunnymen frontman, who lately has developed a vocal fan in Coldplay's Chris Martin, who guests on this disc.

This EP-sized companion-piece to One Bedroom contains three versions of tracks from that recent album (remixed by Stereolab, Carl Craig and Broadcast) as well as four new songs.

21-year old Rjyan Kidwell seems to have all the bases covered on his latest full-length, which might be considered your typical glitchtronica-indie-folk-hip-hop-emo-electro-party jam, if it weren't for the fact that there is absolutely nothing typical about it at all.

The Vancouver, Canada indie supergroup attempts to duplicate the success of 2000's 'Mass Romantic' with this sophomore release. Neko Case returns to handle vocal duties.

'Imperial' marks the first-ever solo release for the Cocteau Twins' guitarist (who also runs record label Bella Union, works as a record producer, and is one-half of the band Violet Indiana). This ten-track instrumental disc sounds a lot like his work with that earlier band.

Otherwise known as the backing band for Robert Pollard in Guided By Voices, Cleveland's Cobra Verde combine numerous 70s rock influences on this, their third studio album. J Mascis guests.

The sample-based indietronica LP 'Rounds' is the third solo effort for Fridge's Kieran Hebden.

Underground producer Scott Herren (aka Prefuse 73) offers his second LP for Warp, which mixes experimental glitchtronica with more accessible hip-hop elements (including vocals on a few tracks provided by guests such as Mr. Lif).

If you can picture an explicitly gay version of the Polyphonic Spree recording church music, then you have a general idea of this unconventional debut album from Toronto, Canada's Hidden Cameras.

This sophomore LP from the UK duo of vocalist Allison Goldfrapp and multi-instrumentalist Will Gregory follows their acclaimed 2000 debut, 'Felt Mountain.'

The trip-hop duo continues to expand their sound on their third album, which features guest appearances from Michael Franti (Spearhead), Me'Shell Ndegeocello, Jimi Goodwin (Doves) and the Scratch Perverts.

The veteran Britpop outfit's first new album in four years is the result of tumultuous recording sessions in Morocco with producer Fatboy Slim, which saw a growing dispute between co-founders Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon culminate in Coxon's departure from the band. Fatboy Slim only wound up producing two tracks, with William Orbit handling some of the others.

On an indie label for the first time in almost two decades, the veteran British folk-rocker returns with a stripped-down sound, courtesy of producer John Chelew.

Professional surfer-turned-rocker Jack Johnson returns with his second LP of mellow alt-rock.

This is the second full-length for the Olympia, Wash-based indie-punk trio led by powerful singer Beth Ditto.

The one constant in the Seattle indie band The Long Winters is Alaska native John Roderick, who is joined on this sophomore effort by a host of musicians including Peter Buck (REM), Scott McCaughey (Minus 5) and Sean Ripple (American Analog Set), with Chris Walla (Death Cab For Cutie) and Ken Stringfellow (The Posies) co-producing.

This is the highly-anticipated debut LP for the New York art-punk trio, who have developed a fanbase and generated a great deal of publicity (not to mention a major-label deal) through a series of EPs and live performances.

This is the third LP for the Louisville-based emo band known for their strong live shows.

The Depeche Mode songwriter's second solo album is just like his first (1989's 'Counterfeit'): all covers. Here, he tackles Brian Eno's "By This River," The Velvet Underground's "Candy Says" (oh my), Nick Cave's "In My Time of Dying," Iggy Pop's "Tiny Girls," and seven other works by your favorite artists.

The legendary English band, now re-formed, reunited and reinvigorated, return with their first LP in over a dozen years, with a sound that recalls the punk energy of their 1970s albums while sounding completely modern. Note that 7 of the 11 tracks here are also found in some form on 2002's twin "Read & Burn" EPs.

The debut album for Ireland's Gemma Hayes shows the twentysomething singer-songwriter attempting to synthesize her diverse influences, who range from My Bloody Valentine to Joni Mitchell. Dave Fridmann produces.

The multimedia collective known as the Blue Man Group, who can be seen and heard in ongoing theatrical productions in several cities, in television commercials for Intel, and even on a previous instrumental album 'Audio,' have released here something akin to a real rock'n'roll album. Their assortment of invented instrumentation is now accompanied by more traditional instruments, and vocals are provided by an array of guests, including Dave Matthews, Spalding Gray and Tracy Bonham. Included also are covers of "White Rabbit" and "I Feel Love."

The dour Glasgow-based duo of Aidan Moffat and Malcom Middleton return for their fifth studio album, with guest contributions from members of Bright Eyes and Mogwai.

The indie-rock combo led by Roman Kuebler (whose resume includes a stint as the touring bassist for Spoon) makes their full-length debut with this 12-track effort.

Following her tenure as singer for roots-rockers Lone Justice, Maria McKee issued a series of three solo releases in the mid 1990s, and then remained relatively quiet for seven years until 'High Dive,' her self-released return.

'Shine' is the first solo album in more than a decade for Daniel Lanois, best known for his production work for artists such as U2, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, and Bob Dylan. Harris guests on vocals here, as does U2's Bono.

Madonna's second collaboration with French electronic producer Mirwais includes the lead single title track as well as her recent James Bond theme, "Die Another Day."

The singer/songwriter/guitarist returns to the studio for the first time since 1996, when he recorded his final album as leader of the Lemonheads. Here, he's joined by Jon Brion on four tracks, as well as members of Giant Sand, Calexico, and Spacehog.

This sophomore effort for the former Whiskeytown member was, like her acclaimed 2002 debut, produced by Chris Stamey. Mary Chapin Carpenter and Mitch Easter are among numerous guests on the album.

Berlin's Stefan Betke (aka Pole) makes his debut for Mute with this 4-track disc, the first in a planned series of EPs.

'2' is the aptly-named second album for the Portland-based indie-pop quartet.

The sophomore LP for the Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter is similar in sound to his 2001 debut 'Musicforthemorningafter.'

On his latest release, Bill Frisell takes an international approach to American folk music, assembling a cosmopolitan group of musicians that includes Malian vocalist/percussionist Sidiki Camara, Brazilian guitarist Vinicius Cantuaria, and Greece's Christos Govetas.

Yes, well, she does have a lot to be thankful for, doesn't she. This hit debut album is a direct result of the singer's victory on the first installment of Fox TV's "American Idol" talent competition in 2002. Judging from the album's credits, just about every musician and producer in the industry seemingly worked on the disc, although Clarkson did manage to co-write four out of the dozen songs.

After a five-year break from the music business, Lisa Germano returns with a new record deal and a new album, hoping to regain the cult following she developed through a series of critically-lauded releases for 4AD in the 1990s.

Championed (and signed) by the White Stripes' Jack White, this spare, Michigan-based keyboard-bass-drums trio has been labeled by Rolling Stone as this generation's Devo. White produced this debut LP, which was mixed by Mercury Rev's Dave Fridmann. And why the album title? According to the band's website, "We all love rabbits."

This debut album for the Washington D.C. punk five-piece (with a rhythm section stocked with two drummers and two bassists) has drawn comparisons to Liars, Fugazi, and Q and Not U.

If you prefer your Fleetwood Mac songs written by Lindsey Buckingham, your 16-year wait is over. Joining Buckingham on this brand-new, 18-track album are Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie.

This is the sophomore release for San Francisco's atmospheric noise-pop band led by vocalist Chris Streng, whose previous band shared members with Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

Yet another experimental indie band to arise out of the Chicago scene, the Fruit Bats are the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Eric Johnson, who has played with Ugly Casanova, I Rowboat, and Califone. On this second Fruit Bats LP, he is joined by Gillian Lisee and producer Brian Deck.

The fourth LP from Ginuwine includes contributions from Method Man, R.Kelly, Sole, Snoop Dogg, and--uh--Mike Tyson.

Portastatic is a side project for Superchunk's Mac McCaughan (who also is part owner of Merge Records). On this, his first Portastatic LP since 1997, he is joined by Sleater-Kinney's Janet Weiss as well as members of Sparklehorse and Lambchop.

The Boston-based punk-metal outfit returns with a third studio LP, produced by David Botrill (Tool).

Recorded live in studio with her band and co-produced by Mark Howard, 'World Without Tears' marks the follow-up to Williams' acclaimed 2001 release 'Essence.'

The Detroit-based electronica duo of Nicola Kuperus and Adam Lee Miller (who also run the Ersatz Audio label) have gained a great deal of acclaim for their early singles and work with other artists. Here, on their full-length debut, they offer 10 brand-new tracks. (Yes, the period at the end of their name is necessary.)

The Akron, Ohio guitar-drums blues duo (needless White Stripes comparison omitted) of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney recorded this sophomore effort in a single 14-hour session.

The brother-sister duo of Kellin and Taryn Manning was signed to a major-label deal in part on the strength of Taryn's burgeoning acting career, which has seen her in roles on TV's "Boston Public" as well as "crazy/beautiful" and "8 Mile."

This 1999 debut album for the all-girl Swedish garage band gets a belated U.S. release (complete with new packaging and bonus tracks) to capitalize on the recent success of their American breakthrough, 2002's 'Jennie Bomb.'

The days of hard-rocking Yo La Tengo appear to be over (at least on record), as the Hoboken, NJ trio continues along the atmospheric, lower-volume path begun on 'And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out.' Included among the 13 Roger Moutenot-produced tracks is a cover of Big Star's "Take Care" and the James McNew-sung "Tiny Birds."

The Brooklyn-based Elephant 6-style band (which shares some members with Ladybug Transistor) returns with a second LP.

The experimental English electronic duo of Rob Brown and Sean Booth was able to find enough time while serving as curators of the 2003 UK version of All Tomorrow's Parties to record this, their seventh full-length as Autechre.

Another of the new new wave of New York bands, Elefant is fronted by Diego Garcia, who despite being born in Detroit and raised in Argentina, sounds awfully British on this short, ten-track debut.

The second LP from Canadian electronic artist Dan Snaith is more song-oriented (and quite a bit more psychedelic) than efforts from similar artists, with Snaith even providing vocals on some tracks. [This release was originally credited under the name Manitoba before being re-released under the name Caribou after the name change]

Best known as the co-creator of MTV's cult hit sock puppet show "Sifl and Olly," Liam Lynch has also studied music at Paul McCartney's academy and is a published writer. 'Fake Songs,' his first album, includes "United States of Whatever" (the most popular song from S&O and now a minor alternative radio hit) and such tracks as "Fake David Bowie Song," "Fake Pixies Song," and "Fake Depeche Mode Song."

The seventh album for the Minnesota alt-country outfit features a smaller-than-usual lineup of songwriter/vocalist Gary Louris, bassist Marc Perlman and drummer Tim O'Reagan, joined by new guitarist Stephen McCarthy. Matthew Sweet and Jakob Dylan guest.

UK pop star Robbie Williams follows the success of Sing When You're Winning with this, his fifth and most adult-sounding LP.

Trail of Dead fans waiting for the band's follow-up to 2002's 'Source Tags & Codes' will have to make do, for now, with this 5-track EP (which also contains three videos).

The UK glam-punk band returns with their fourth album.

The sixth solo release for Yo La Tengo bassist James McNew finds him playing all of the instruments on 13 tracks that veer from style to style but share a certain lo-fi charm. There are ten originals and three covers, including the unlikely album-closing take on Thin Lizzy's "Cowboy Song."

"Coincidentally" released on the same day as the fourth album by the White Stripes, to whom the Kills are frequently compared, 'Mean Side' is the debut full-length for the UK blues-rock duo of VV (aka Alison Mosshart) and Hotel, who are backed by a drum machine (a la the Raveonettes).

For their major label debut (and fourth LP overall), the Detroit-based duo of Jack and Meg White offer up 14 new tracks, all recorded in London and (fortunately) showing absolutely no trace of major label production values. Meg White takes a rare turn behind the microphone on a couple of tracks, as does guest Holly Golightly on the closing "It's True That We Love One Another."

This is the full-length debut for the somewhat intimidating New York trio, who are frequently compared to Suicide.

The third album for the Scottish rockers is already a big hit with UK music fans, helped by the success of lead single "You Held the World in Your Arms."

The French R&B duo offer up a mix of French- and English-language tracks on this belated follow-up to their successful 1998 debut.

The latest release from the prolific indie-rocker and artist was recorded with Sparklehorse's Mark Linkous.

The unique singer-songwriter's 11th LP was produced by Mark Howard (Lucinda Williams).

The English post-rock trio's third album finds them moving even further away from their Krautrock roots.

Rebounding from a vocal chord injury that almost ended her singing career, Rosanne Cash returns with her first album in seven years. Guests include Sheryl Crow, Steve Earle, Teddy Thompson, and daddy Johnny Cash.

This long-awaited follow-up to 2000's 'Hybrid Theory' contains 12 new tracks co-produced by Don Gilmore.

The New Zealand retro-rockers scored a major-label deal in the U.S. on the strength of this 2002 debut album, which received an American re-release in March 2003.

This is the second album for the quriky Scottish indie-pop duo of Colin MacIntyre and Alan Malloy.