Ed Sheeran Ed Sheeran’s Ambitious, Ludicrously Star-Studded ‘No.6 Collaborations Project’Rolling Stone - Danny Schwartz In 2011, a few months before his career exploded and he took the mantle as the world’s most successful busker, Ed Sheeran put out an EP called No.5 …
Music Purple Mountains’ Debut is a Richly Depressive Comeback Album from a Brilliant SongwriterRolling Stone - Jon Dolan Welcome back, David Berman, a literary indie-rock great who’s been gone way too long. Berman’s debut with his new band Purple Mountains is his first …
Music Reggae All-Stars Convene Soul Summit on ‘Red Gold Green & Blue’Rolling Stone - Will Hermes One of the greatest rhythm sections to ever rub-a-dub on planet Earth, Sly and Robbie’s client roster has included Dylan, Madonna, Serge Gainsbourg, …
Music Review: Banks Doubles Down On Her Emo Goth-Pop with “III”Rolling Stone - Will Hermes Since her gothy 2014 single “Beggin’ For Thread” (“to sew this hole up that you ripped in my head”), Jillian Banks has stepped with a vanguard …
Music Daniel Caesar is a Contemplative Horndog on ‘Case Study 101’Rolling Stone - Danny Schwartz At some point in the middle of this decade, the brooding, atmospheric, synthetic R&B pioneered by Toronto artists like Drake and The Weeknd reached a …
Music Runaway June Make Harmony-Drenched, Grown-Up Country-Pop on ‘Blue Roses’Rolling Stone - Jon Freeman “I might be heart broke, but that don’t mean I gotta stay home,” sings Runaway June’s Naomi Cooke in the country trio’s sprightly hit single “Buy My …
Music Freddie Gibbs and Madlib’s ‘Bandana’ is the Sound of Two Rap Veterans at the Height of their PowersRolling Stone - Danny Schwartz Freddie Gibbs and Madlib are two larger-than-life figures who carry diametric mystiques. Gibbs is the Rust Belt hero, the world-beating outlaw who …
J Balvin Bad Bunny and J Balvin’s Global Victory Lap ‘Oasis’Rolling Stone - Isabelia Herrera Just over a year after J Balvin first hinted at a collaborative album with Bad Bunny, the reggaeton and Latin trap titans have finally released their …
Thom Yorke Thom Yorke Creates Dystopian Rapture That’s Perfect For Our Terrifying Times on ‘Anima’Rolling Stone - Rob Sheffield Thom Yorke describes his excellent new solo album Anima as “dystopian,” which isn’t exactly the hugest surprise in the world. With or without …
Music The Black Keys and Raconteurs Take Rock Back to the FutureRolling Stone - David Fricke If rock is dead, that memo did not reach Nashville, where these albums were recorded. And Detroit – the Raconteurs’ real home, where …
Music Black Midi Create Cathartic Experimental Rock on their Debut ‘Schlagenheim’Rolling Stone - Jon Dolan With nods to King Crimson, Talking Heads, Death Grips, and many others, London’s Black Midi creates a unique brand of cathartic punishment on their …
Lil Nas X Lil Nas X Keeps Riding Down the Old Town Road on His Debut EP ‘7’Rolling Stone - Brittany Spanos When a new artist is coming off a massive Number One breakout hit, the burning question is always whether or not they can shake that multi-platinum …
Music Hot Chip Dive Deep Into Dancefloor Bliss on ‘A Bathful of Ecstasy’Rolling Stone - Joe Levy “I make soulless electronic pop,” Lady Gaga once said. “But when you’re on Ecstasy in a nightclub grinding up against someone and my music comes on, …
Music Hollywood Vampires Search for Fresh Blood on ‘Rise’Rolling Stone - Kory Grow Hollywood Vampires may be a supergroup, but their self-titled 2015 debut album was essentially a souped-up showcase for frontman Alice Cooper. …
Mark Ronson Mark Ronson’s Chill’s Out With Some Great Guests on ‘Late Night Feelings’Rolling Stone - Will Hermes Mark Ronson branded himself a nostalgia alchemist with Amy Winehouse, updating mid-century R&B with a rare-groove-fanatic’s ear for detail. Where …
Willie Nelson Willie Nelson’s ‘Ride Me Back Home’ Is Another Sturdy Set of Late-Life WisdomRolling Stone - Jonathan Bernstein Two years ago, Willie Nelson delivered God’s Problem Child, a tragicomic heart-stopping meditation on the singer’s rapidly advancing age. A year …
Madonna Takes A Weird, Wild Ride on ‘Madame X’Rolling Stone - Rob Sheffield Madonna albums from this century fall into two categories: the playing-it-safe ones, and the “WTF is she thinking?” ones. You might be tempted to …
Future’s Freewheeling EP ‘Save Me’Rolling Stone - Christopher R. Weingarten Future’s desolate sing-croon is partially responsible for swaths of chart-topping SoundCloud rap, a generation of hitmakers prioritizing depression …
Stef Chura is an Unstoppable Midwestern Indie-Rock Force on ‘Midnight’Rolling Stone - Jon Dolan Michigan’s Stef Chura is a formidable triple threat: intense singer, bracing guitarist, revelatory songwriter. You can hear Karen O of the Yeah Yeah …
Miley Cyrus Detours Back to Twerkville on ‘She Is Coming’Rolling Stone - Sarah Grant Just when Miley was looking like the sane one, she’s back with a new EP that’s sure to irritate everyone who’d hoped her writhing, wrecking-ball days …
‘The Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Live Recordings’ Goes Deep Inside Bob Dylan’s Legendary Rock & Roll Medicine ShowRolling Stone - David Fricke From the rough, spontaneous energy of the rehearsals that open this box to the set’s barely-tamed-tornado climax, on stage in Montreal, Bob Dylan’s …
Perry Farrell’s ‘Kind Heaven’ Is a Mind-Bending Audio HallucinationRolling Stone - Kory Grow Untethered from Dave Navarro’s walloping guitar riffs, Perry Farrell’s latest solo album feels like a swirling, ADHD fever dream — and that’s not …
Santana Explore New Musical Freedom, Led by Carlos’ Guitar on ‘Africa Speaks’Rolling Stone - Kory Grow Santana launched their career half a century ago with a cover of Nigerian percussionist Babatunde Olatunji’s “Jingo” and now, for their 25th album, …
Avicii’s Dark Farewell ‘Tim’Rolling Stone - Will Hermes Tim Bergling’s struggles were laid disturbingly bare in the film Avicii: True Stories – the story of a superstar DJ-cum-pop star whose fame and …
Ian Noe’s ‘Between the Country’ Is a Stunning Folk Album Full of Despair, DefianceRolling Stone - Jonathan Bernstein “Well, I’ve been in this Junk Town most of my life,” singer-songwriter Ian Noe sings on his debut album, Between the Country. Noe hails from …
Prince’s ‘Originals’ Gathers Blueprints of His Handed-Off Hits.Rolling Stone - Will Hermes Prince in the early-to-mid ‘80s was spitting out hot songs at such a clip, it’s no wonder he shared the wealth. And wealth it was: his “Manic Monday” …
Thomas Rhett Is a Perfect Country Gentleman on ‘Center Point Road’Rolling Stone - Jonathan Bernstein Few singers have played a larger role in defining the sound of country music over the past half-dozen years than Thomas Rhett, the honey-smooth …
Duff McKagan Gets Woke and It Works on New Solo Album ‘Tenderness’Rolling Stone - Kory Grow Duff McKagan, Guns N’ Roses’ second-best singer (or is it third-best? where’s Izzy?), gets woke on his mellow new solo album. Amid twanging steel …
Lee Perry’s ‘Rainford’ is a Dub Icon’s Victory LapRolling Stone - Will Hermes “People: repent ” intones Lee “Scratch” Perry to begin what might be his gazillionth LP, Rainford — and his signature spacey West Indian …
