Expect the expected with plenty of xylophones, campfire guitars, and Dawson's breathy cuteness mixing with Aesop's serious severity, but expect to be thrown as well, mostly by ideas of community and how strangers can leave lifelong impressions.

Weird Work ends up living up to its name: it's not as precious as Boeldt's previous albums, but it's not as envelope-pushing as its inspirations, and it's also some of his most accomplished, yet least immediate music.

It might not be the grand arrival showcase that was expected but Papoose hasn't fallen off the "ones to watch" list quite yet, even when he's been on there longer than most anyone else.

Streetlight Manifesto delivering an album of bittersweet ska-punk that feels more grown-up than anyone could have expected the genre to be.

Pharaohs aren't inventing anything new here but what they do well is grab the best bits from all the danceable electronic music that has come before them and consolidate it into something shiny and new.

Garwood's haunted musical vision is seamlessly suited to underscore Lanegan's dry-as-dust vocals and his American Gothic lyric skills.

MS MR concentrate on a sullen yet sultry mood for the bulk of Secondhand Rapture, and while that delivers several notable tracks--"Fantasy" and "Head Is Not My Home" chief among them--at times it's almost too much.

For better or for worse, they perfected their sound the last time around, so it’s hard to fault them for sticking so close to the fire, especially on such a snowy night.

The more physical moments are nearly outshone by a set of beat-less ambient pieces that amount to some of Locust's most riveting work.

The debut from California indie pop buzz band Youngblood Hawke, 2013's Wake Up is an infectious, bombastic party album perfect for the summer months.

Abandon is an exercise in precision, drawing in its prey and exposing it to a sonic assault that will leave it both exhausted and enlightened.

Drifters/Love Is the Devil spans nearly every sound in Dirty Beaches' musical spectrum to make another strongly evocative album in Hungtai's body of work.

A couple more bitchy bits like this ["Wanna Be"] and the album could win over old fans with ease, but if Lip Lock isn't mean enough, well, neither is Eve. She's sweeter than before and musically more adventurous.

Wilderness, the tenth long-player from the New Mexico-based husband-and-wife team of Brett and Rennie Sparks (The Handsome Family) lives up to its ecological moniker with a 12-track set that invokes both nature and nurture, with an emphasis on the shady bits in between.

30 Seconds to Mars are no longer afraid to dabble with disco--"Up in the Air" puts all four on the floor and there's an overall tendency to push big beats over hard attacks--and this loosening of their stylistic confines results in their boldest, brightest, most imaginative record yet.

Recommended Record is a super-stylized collage of sounds, clearly put together by big music fans, and it's ambitious palette of sounds only occasionally falters.

The 11 tunes kick off with a jump blues rendition of "Them There Eyes," a rock blues take on Ike & Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits"; punchy horns accentuate the Buddy Miles penned "Miss Lady," and they give a straightforward soul treatment to the Don Covay/Steve Cropper tune "See Saw" recorded by Aretha Franklin in 1968.

Marling is an old soul through and through, and her remarkably timeless voice, idiosyncratic lyrics, and increasingly impressive guitar chops help to elevate the album's less immediate moments, and while some may argue that her increasingly Americanized, Pacific coast folk-pop can feel a little like fan fiction, it doesn't make it any less enjoyable to sink your toes into.

While Live with the Britten Sinfonia may be too formal to provide the wild, free-ranging ride that one might expect from this adventurous lot, it is dazzling in its own right and in almost all the right ways.

Tricky seems to be doing some soul-searching--but the running time is long, and at least three quarters of the album is top-shelf.

Despite the obvious--and deliberate--reference points, most of Howl is a solid chapter in the evolution of a fascinating band.

Eisley rarely come off as cloying, and while Currents may require a little more patience from the listener than on previous outings, it's well worth the investment.

Other Life, while being a solid album, falls short of being any type of definitive statement about his place in the landscape of his scene or the world at large.

While these few songs ["Losing a Friend" and "That Girl, That Scene"] threaten to derail the album, the rest of the set is more unified, offering an understated but brilliant celebration of both Frankie & the Heartstrings' unique songwriting and their catalog of classic pop influences.

As this excellent introductory comp proves, no matter which sonic path he chooses here, or will choose in the future, Furlow's songcraft and skill at coming up with hummable, strummable songs will serve him well and make fans of pop music with a little grit and gunk quite happy.

Overall, these songs are a fine reintroduction to a band that has worked hard to emphasize its strengths and come up with new ones.

Even if it doesn't always demand listeners' attention, Immunity is never less than thoughtfully crafted.

Evil Friends offers ample evidence that the match between Portugal. The Man and Burton expanded the horizons of both parties and will likely heighten the band's profile considerably.