Throughout, Spíra's soft, intricate arrangements, earnest vocals, and frequent minor modes give it a quality that's exquisite and haunting at once, making it an excellent entry point to an artist due for rediscovery.

House on Fire is Billy Childish's show, the latest volume in a long and utterly uncompromised run, and it's the work of a man whose art still matters and never gets stale. He means all of this, every word, silly or vengeful, and we should be glad he sees no reason to stop.

It's thoughtful and fun and sophisticated, utterly alluring, another fantastic success by Zach Condon.

If Dylan learned anything from Sinatra, it's how to drill to the core of the song. Dylan does just that on Triplicate, finding the heart beating within some old warhorses and placing them within several great American musical traditions, and that's why this cements his place as one of the most distinctive interpreters of the Great American Songbook.

While the trademark sound is still much in force, group mastermind RZA jettisoned the elaborate beat symphonies and carefully placed strings of Forever in favor of tight productions with little more than scarred soul samples and tight, tough beats. The back-to-basics approach works well, not only because it rightly puts the focus back on the best cadre of rappers in the world of hip-hop, but also because RZA's immense trackmaster talents can't help but shine through anyway.

Live from the Underground winds up both an easy introduction to the man's talents and a crowd-pleasing effort with no stale sell-out aftertaste.

Entertainment and enrichment are provided unsparingly.

With Rest, she grows more fearless as an artist while facing her losses, and the future, with courage and love.

It's a faithful version that humbly spotlights the versatility of a fascinating talent.

To the duo's credit, Matmos avoids making A Chance to Cut Is a Chance to Cure grisly or gross; Andrew Daniel and Martin Schmidt approach the album's concept with their usual playfulness and an appropriately clinical detachment, resulting in some clever and surprisingly diverse songs

Compulsive in more than one sense, Big Black Coat contends with Last Exit as Junior Boys' deepest, most vibrant work.

A quarter century after they formed, X: The Godless Void and Other Stories is triumphant proof that they're as passionate as ever.

The album isn't an album of a moments, it's a collection that sustains a mood. A mood that's ragged and slack, but too dulled to charm.

Those looking to rock out won't find many headbanging opportunities here, but Nothing Is Wrong works well as driving music, particularly if the scenery outside your windshield matches the sepia-toned music.

By pushing each other out of their comfort zones, Beth and Gillespie make Utopian Ashes an unabashedly theatrical -- and consistently entertaining -- look at falling out of love.

End Times Undone is a fine addition to a long career of near brilliant indie rock.

Pink is easily the most cohesive, adventurous, and straight-ahead rocking recording of their 12-year career.

Iceage have developed a record reaching out in many directions without straining to make any points.

Ruinism is a bold reinvention of Lapalux's sound, and is undoubtedly his best work to date.

Hundreds of Days finds Lattimore gracefully adapting to her new surroundings, adding new dimensions to her sound but keeping its dreaminess and sentimentality intact.

Mnestic Pressure is a challenging but thoroughly stunning album that finds Gamble significantly pulling his vision more into focus than before.

For as good as the songs are, what's initially so absorbing about Americana is this limber musicality. What makes it last are the songs, which are wry, moving, and truthful, which wasn't always the case in his book.

Tracing the emotional arc of the album, a couple of calmer interludes lead into the crashing splendor of "If...." and the brooding shoegaze turbulence of "Is That What You Wanted to Hear?" The glacial drift of "Forget the Credits" feels like all of the previous songs' stress has been released as a balloon, and it feels fine to just lay back and free one's self of all burdens, now that it's all over.

Praise & Blame winds up an undeniably excellent album that you're either ready for or you're not.

Nothing here feels the least bit overdone. Marissa Nadler is a sensual, provocative, enticing work of vision and maturity.

Collector feels a bit uneven at times, but in the end Disq has enough attitude and smart ideas to keep things exciting.

They tweak their sound in ways that seem to reflect emotional complexity while strengthening hooks and riffs, at least on the more memorable tunes.

Given Spoon's reputation for consistency, it's not a surprise that Transference is good. However, it manages to be good in surprising ways.