Paranormal isn't the return to form one might have hoped for, but it's no embarrassment either, and Cooper appears to be having a grand time while giving his fans a good show for their dollar.

It's a stark, beautiful recording that hopefully proves something to both Lynne and Moorer: That what's here is a new beginning and that there is much more to explore.

Throughout, the engaging melodies, reliable hooks, and warm, even-tempered vocals would win friends easily; its simmering energy pushes the album over the line into crush-worthy.

Despite its calm demeanor, Mellow Waves is nearly as intricate as Cornelius' previous albums, and its masterful ebb and flow just gets richer with each listen.

Cuidado Madame is a constantly surprising album from a veteran who is all too familiar with making intriguing contradictions.

Marley acquits himself well, turning in a strong modern reggae album that's informed by R&B and rap, but is very much its own thing.

With Popular Manipulations, the Districts make their first grand statement, setting a new bar for themselves in the process.

How Do You Spell Heaven is one of the best and smartest rock albums Guided by Voices have given us since Isolation Drills, and this music confirms Pollard is no dummy when it comes to putting together a band.

It's easy to hear why Good Time won an award before the film was even in wide release: The way Oneohtrix Point Never's score bridges character, setting, and mood offers much more than a passive backdrop.

While it doesn't feel quite as honed as some of the Cribs' other albums, 24-7 Rock Star Shit is a lot of fun, as well as more proof that the band's eternal tug of war between grit and polish still generates excitement.

Forgiving those space fillers, Scum remains a great pleasure, the product of a young mind brimming with ideas coupled with enough youthful bravery to take such risks.

The opening title track and "Connect the Dots," two of three cuts produced by recent Dreamchasers signee Papamitrou, are among the grimmest, most thunderous moments in Meek's discography.

Life Is Fine doesn't break new ground for Kelly, but it also shows he doesn't need to come up with new concepts or mess with his formula in order to make a memorable album.

Apocalypse is a refreshing change of pace, a frantically urgent statement that taps into the visceral with a welcome blast of noise from a voice that still has much to say.

Produced by Guy Picciotto of Fugazi in tandem with engineer Greg Norman, Cost of Living is a tougher and leaner effort than Full Communism, with the group's abundant energy even more tightly focused.

It's very difficult to argue with what Rawlings and company have assembled here. Aside from one misstep (that, to be fair, others might find less wearying) ["Lindsay Button"is the set's longest track and it feels like it], it's every bit as good as Nashville Obsolete.

On these songs, and really all of the album, Rose isn't just using the '80s as a prop or making a novelty record. The big emotions need a big sound and the songs about returning to the city of her youth need the music of her youth to really hit home.

By slyly alternating between these two extremes throughout Rainbow, Kesha winds up with a comeback that's fully realized emotionally and musically.

The best songs on Gibbard's tribute illuminate something new or codify what was essentially great about the original. Sometimes he even manages to do both, while essentially offering up slavishly executed re-creations of the original tracks.

The release is certainly pleasant, but it often seems too laid-back and sluggish to really get excited about.

The album as a whole seems unfocused, and while the producer deserves kudos for making his most mature work yet, Foreign Light contains too few high points to warrant a recommendation.

The entire EP is haunting, surreal, and undeniably beautiful.

Even the album's weakest cut, "It's a Jungle Out There," works in context, and the two numbers about the bonds of family, "Lost Without You" and "Wandering Boy," are thoughtful and genuinely moving. And the easy, endlessly reliable stride of Newman's piano remains one of popular music's most underrated pleasures.

It's nothing more than a couple of old friends sitting around and cracking jokes to each other. If you happen to share their sensibility, it's a fun way to spend 50 minutes.

Sodium proves that at their best, Dasher are a truly powerful band.

Woodland Echoes can't be called a return to form for Heyward because he never lost his form; it just went unheard for years. Call it a welcome return instead, because the world of pop music always needs music this smart, tuneful, and unabashedly romantic.

A brief teaser with only eight tracks that last less than half an hour, it's enough to make the promise of the young Nashville native evident.

The giddy quality may stick more than do individual songs, but they succeed in capturing some of the wooziness of new love.