Swedish DJ Avicii is a strange case. In 2011, he broke through with "Levels," a bleepy and bright bit of EDM that could have been his signature hit, but then his 2013 album, True, was a country-pop and folk-inspired affair that thrilled his fans with its inventiveness, but left others as cold as a meandering Mumford & Sons remix effort. Two years later, his LP Stories is another genre-busting affair that fits in better with mainstream radio than it does the club, but everything iffy about True has been perfected here, as the producer revisits the song-oriented album and lets the outside genres freely come and go. Country-pop is back in EDM remix form when "Broken Arrows" offers a spirited Zac Brown song with Avicii pumping it higher during the whirlwind bridge, but "Pure Grinding" is a highlight that would have never fit on True, and it lives up to its claim to be "funktronica" with double-dutch lyrics and '70s electro in support. "Touch Me" is a bell-bottomed delight that owes a debt to the disco movement, specifically Chic, and if the strange "City Lights" is the album's most arguable track, fans of Meco and Giorgio Moroder could argue it's spot-on with its robot vocals and tiny melody. "Talk to Myself," with Sterling Fox, steps into the '80s with a modern version of Matthew Wilder's "Break My Stride," and the rest of the prime moments come from the mainstream pop side of the spectrum, with the Martin Garrix and Simon Aldred (Cherry Ghost) feature "Waiting for Love" leading the pack. "Can't Catch Me," with Matisyahu and Wyclef Jean, is reggae, but the kind that Michael Franti and Radio Margaritaville can agree on, while "For a Better Day" is the same kind of electro and soul that Moby took to the top of the charts. Complaints that this isn't a dance album and doesn't sound like "Levels" may still be filed, but they're better applied to True. The pleasing, alive, and diverse Stories is a fine reason to think of Avicii as a producer of attractive music, with EDM, pop, and all other genres on a sliding scale.© David Jeffries /TiVo

Recorded live at the Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles on their 2018 tour, Live in the City of Angels captures Simple Minds at their best. Featured are numerous tracks from their back catalog including fan favorites "Don’t You (Forget About Me)," "Sanctify Yourself," and "Alive and Kicking."© Rich Wilson /TiVo

A couple of months after pianist Esbjörn Svensson passed away in 2008 after a freak diving accident, what was thought to be the band's final album, Leucocyte, was released. It was considered final because the pianist had been involved in its mixing and sequencing as he had each of their previous 11 albums. The release of 301 comes as a surprise. The material included here was chosen from nine hours of tape recorded during the Leucocyte sessions -- which was, interestingly, originally conceived as a double album. The band fully expected another album would be culled from the remaining material. E.S.T. cut Leucocyte while on tour, having no compositions; what emerged came came out of individual ideas or group jams, making this set feel very much like an extension of the previous recording. The band's surviving members, bassist Dan Berglund and drummer Magnus Öström, along with regular sound engineer Åke Linton, all participated in 301's assemblage (named for the 301 Studios in Sydney). While it may have been sequenced or even mixed a bit differently had Svensson lived, everything here comes together as a compelling whole. Svensson was always keen to embrace more electronic sounds alongside his explorations of post-bop, and they are present here in tracks such as the formlessly experimental noise of "Houston, The 5th," the spacious electronic ambience that constantly yet hesitantly adorns the the backdrop (and even Svensson's piano occasionally) on the gorgeous, sinister "Inner City, City Lights," and in Berglund's blasting, fuzzed-out, phase-shifting basslines on the lengthy "Three Falling Free Part II." But the trio's jazz chops are abundant throughout. Opener "Behind the Stars" is a lovely, lilting, solo piano ballad. Another highlight is the stretched, swinging, balancing act of harmonic engagement in the nearly 14 minute "The Left Lane," while there's yet another shimmering blues in closer "The Childhood Dream." Ultimately, 301 proves that E.S.T. ended the way they came in, as a committed jazz group constantly seeking new ways of expanding the piano trio format as well the parameters of the music itself. This is not only a fine addition to their catalog, it is one of the finest entries in it.© Thom Jurek /TiVo

Warm, weary, wild, and wounded, The Weatherman, the third long-player from Johannesburg, South Africa-born, Philadelphia-raised, and Boulder, Colorado-based singer/songwriter Gregory Alan Isakov, picks up where 2009's well-received This Empty Northern Hemisphere left off, presenting another stylistically austere yet emotionally charged set of lyrical and melodious indie folk songs that invoke names like José González, Bon Iver, A.A. Bondy, and Josh Ritter. Released on Isakov's own Suitcase Town Music imprint, highlights include the languid and lush opener "Amsterdam," the wistful "She Always Takes It Back," the dreamy "Saint Valentine," and the impossibly lovely "Suitcase Full of Sparks." © TiVo

U2's first two greatest-hits albums neatly divided themselves by decade, with the first covering the '80s and the second summing up the '90s. Their third hits comp, 2006's U218 Singles, is at once more ambitious and more concise, offering an overview of their first 26 years on a single disc comprised of 18 tracks -- and since two of those are new songs, that leaves just 16 songs to tell their whole story. That's not much space for a band with a career as lengthy and ambitious as U2, so it's inevitable that some painful cuts have been made. Nothing from October, Zooropa or Pop is here, and unless you're buying various import editions that have "I Will Follow" as a bonus track, there's nothing from Boy, either. There's only one cut each from The Unforgettable Fire and Rattle and Hum -- and bucking conventional wisdom, none of their three widely accepted masterpieces -- War, The Joshua Tree, or Achtung Baby -- provide the most songs here. No, out of all their albums the one that dominates U218 Singles is All That You Can't Leave Behind, their 2000 comeback from the depths of the misguided Pop, and one of two records that they've released since their last hits compilation, The Best of 1990-2000.The other record they've released since then is How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, which provides two songs here -- or, as many as there are from War and Achtung Baby. What this means is that this compilation skews very heavily toward latter-day U2 -- eight out of 18 tracks, a full 44 percent of the collection, are from 2000 on, which means that U218 Singles presents the classicist version of the band, featuring the anthems from U2 at their peak, plus the highlights from when U2 were trying their best to sound like U2 at their peak. They did it quite well, of course, from both a commercial and artistic standpoint, sometimes writing songs that stood proudly alongside "Pride (In the Name of Love)" and "Sunday Bloody Sunday" (as in "Beautiful Day") and sometimes not ("Elevation"). When it's all mixed together, it paints a portrait of a band that's a little slicker and streamlined than it often was, and it's hard not to miss the big-hearted yet moody band that made "Bad," "Gloria," and "A Sort of Homecoming," not to mention the middle-aged Euro experimentalists responsible for "Numb" and "Stay! (Faraway, So Close)," two essential components of the band that has been forced aside by the arena rock pros on display here.Then again, U2 always were the best arena rockers of their generation, and for those who love the spectacle and sound of the band in full flight, U218 Singles serves up that side of the band quite well, along with two new entries that find the band continuing the assured, even-handed sound of Atomic Bomb: a cover of the Skids' "The Saints Are Coming," recorded with Green Day and rewritten to vaguely address the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and "Window in the Skies," an anthemic pop number that relies too heavily on synth strings yet is saved by the band's sturdy songwriting and reliable performance. As such, it might not cover all the bases, but it covers enough of the major ones to be a good summary for fellow travelers who just know U2 from the radio, and it's also a good one-stop introduction to the basics for neophytes.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

Ever since the beginning of their career, U2 had a sense of purpose and played on a larger scale than their peers, so when they stumbled with the knowing rocktronica fusion of 1997's Pop -- the lone critical and commercial flop in their catalog -- it was enough to shake the perception held among fans and critics, perhaps even among the group itself, that the band was predestined to always be the world's biggest and best rock & roll band. Following that brief, jarring stumble, U2 got back to where they once belonged with All That You Can't Leave Behind, returning to the big-hearted anthems of their '80s work. It was a confident, cinematic album that played to their strengths, winning back the allegiance of wary fans and critics, who were eager to once again bestow the title of the world's biggest and best band upon the band, but all that praise didn't acknowledge a strange fact about the album: it was a conservative affair. After grandly taking risks for the better part of a decade, U2 curbed their sense of adventure, consciously stripping away the irony that marked every one of their albums since 1991's Achtung Baby, and returning to the big, earnest sound and sensibility of their classic '80s work. How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, the long-awaited 2004 sequel to ATYCLB, proves that this retreat was no mere fling: the band is committed to turning back the clock and acting like the '90s never happened. Essentially, U2 are trying to revirginize themselves, to erase their wild flirtation with dance clubs and postmodernism so they can return to the time they were the social conscience of rock music. Gone are the heavy dance beats, gone are the multiple synthesizers, gone are the dense soundscapes that marked their '90s albums, but U2 are so concerned with recreating their past that they don't know where to stop peeling away the layers. They've overcorrected for their perceived sins, scaling back their sound so far that they have shed the murky sense of mystery that gave The Unforgettable Fire and The Joshua Tree an otherworldly allure. That atmospheric cloud has been replaced with a clean, sharp production, gilded in guitars and anchored with straight-ahead, unhurried rhythms that never quite push the songs forward. This crisp production lacks the small sonic shadings that gave ATYCLB some depth, and leaves How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb showcasing U2 at their simplest, playing direct, straight-ahead rock with little subtlety and shading in the production, performance, or lyrics. Sometimes, this works to the band's detriment, since it can reveal how familiar the Edge's guitar has grown or how buffoonish Bono's affectations have become (worst offender: the overdubbed "hola!" that answers the "hello" in the chorus of "Vertigo"). But the stark production can also be an advantage, since the band still sounds large and powerful. U2 still are expert craftsmen, capable of creating records with huge melodic and sonic hooks, of which there are many on HTDAAB, including songs as reassuring as the slyly soulful "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own" and the soaring "City of Blinding Lights," or the pile-driving "All Because of You." Make no mistake, these are all the ingredients that make How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb a very good U2 record, but what keeps it from reaching the heights of greatness is that it feels too constrained and calculated, too concerned with finding purpose in the past instead of bravely heading into the future. It's a minor but important detail that may not matter to most listeners, since the record does sound good when it's playing, but this conservatism is what keeps HTDAAB earthbound and prevents it from standing alongside War, The Joshua Tree, and Achtung Baby as one of the group's finest efforts.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

Elevated to the position of international stars -- if not quite globe-conquering superstars -- with their 2009 album This Is War, 30 Seconds to Mars do the smart thing for their 2013 sequel, Love Lust Faith + Dreams. They retain War co-producer Steve Lillywhite -- here co-producing with the band's lead singer/songwriter Jared Leto -- and give themselves a sleek, stylish makeover, accentuating the creeping escalation of electronics heard on This Is War and otherwise shedding whatever churning new millennial angst that lingered on the third record while retaining their emo angst and love of prog. Often, the pounding, splattering analog synthesizers bring to mind the otherworldly, trapped-in-amber futurism of the '70s -- the instrumental march "Pyres of Varanasi" expertly evokes the unsettling vistas of Wendy Carlos' soundtrack for A Clockwork Orange -- but this isn't a retro record, it's galvanized for the present, pushing its thick processed guitars, chanted choruses, and clanging keyboards to the forefront, flirting with taboos underneath its shining surface. 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.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

While plenty of metalcore bands have injected melody into their sound, few have taken the idea as far as A Day to Remember, a band who have made a name for themselves by tempering the menace of their metal side with a yearning that borders on pop-punk. Now, fresh out from under a deal with Victory Records and self-releasing their albums, the band's fifth effort, Common Courtesy, seems to push this sound even further. While the band's sound has always had a certain soaring quality to it, there's an unfettered feel about the album that feels refreshing. A Day to Remember have always been doing their own thing, and now that they're not answering to anyone but their fans and one another, they're free to make the music they want to make on their own terms. This comes through in little ways, like in the snippets of studio banter that have been left on tracks, giving fans a window into a creative process that sounds fun and relaxed. Aside from the general feeling of freedom, Common Courtesy once again puts the band's talent on display, showing off their impressive versatility as musicians and songwriters as they casually drift from punishing metalcore breakdowns to singalong choruses on songs like "Dead & Buried." Lots of bands have a hard time just getting the basics right, so when a band like A Day to Remember come through and nail every genre they care to throw into the mix, it's a feat that's worth paying attention to, and given these guys' ability to tackle so many different sounds, it's hard not to find something to like here no matter where your tastes may lie.© Gregory Heaney /TiVo

Best known as a composer of choral and instrumental music, Ola Gjeilo frequently performs on his recordings as an accompanist. However, for this 2020 Decca album, Gjeilo is the soloist, playing piano on all 18 tracks, and the character of Night is one of simple tonal melodies and quiet atmosphere. A song impulse runs throughout the album, at times making this collection seem rather in need of lyrics and a vocalist who could bring real expression to the music. As it stands, though, Night lacks the focus that inspired texts could give it, and the bland harmonies, easy arpeggios, and gentle, slowly spun out melodies work against any notions of direction or substance. A quick sample of titles, such as Firefly, Sleepless, Still, City Lights, Night Rain, and so on, give a fair idea of what Gjeilo is trying to achieve. Yet instead of creating a vaguely poetic ambiance, they point to the interchangeability of his titles and music, and his fairly uniform touch and avoidance of bold, dramatic strokes makes this album only suitable as inobtrusive background music.© Blair Sanderson /TiVo

Anyone who has ever walked along Marseille’s famous “Ledge of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy” will know that feeling of being caught between the beautiful Mediterranean sea, stretching out to what seems like infinity, and the bustle of cars on the boulevard. It was on a scooter ride along that same road that the fifth album by Kid Francescoli (a.k.a. Mathieu Hocine) was born, for it was at that very moment that he left behind the tumultuous relationship with his former muse Julia Minkin to find musical love with a new artist: the French/Brazilian Samantha. Her fragile, soft voice blends in perfectly to the swaying rhythms and sensual harmonies of the album’s single Eu Quero, as well as on Ces Deux-là and O Sol. Three other female singers also join the duo: Sarah Rebecca (who has previously collaborated with French 79) on Miss Mess and The Only One; Italian-Moroccan Nassee on Alive and City Lights; and Alizée, a.k.a. iOni, on Cent Corps and So Over. Despite the different vocal personalities that pervade Lovers, not to mention all the different languages (French, English and Portuguese), the album is undeniably cohesive. All these differences fuse together like a kind of Mediterranean “Map of Tendre”, revealing a succession of songs which give pride of place to sensuality and sunshine. It’s a bit like a musical version of Abdellatif Kechiche’s cinema (particularly the film Mektoub, My Love, shot not far from the Ledge). The producer French 79 highlights Kid Francescoli’s new-found serenity, notably in the entrancing track The Only One and the ethereal instrumental track entitled Lovedrops. © Nicolas Magenham/Qobuz

This 13th studio album from the British hard rock heroes follows 2019's Please Remain Seated. Recorded before 2020's first COVID-19 lockdown and originally scheduled to be released in September of that year, it sees a return to the classic hard-driving Thunder sound that has made the band famous among aficionados of classic rock and old-school heavy metal.© John D. Buchanan /TiVo