The long-gestating follow-up to 2016's ambitious concept album, Stage, Life Is But a Dream… sees Avenged Sevenfold go further down the rabbit hole with an innovative set of progressive metal epics rooted in existential crisis. Inspired by the band's dalliances with hallucinogenics and the writings of French philosopher Albert Camus, the LP covers a wide swath of sonic terra firma, from punishing thrash and hardcore to operatic, Pink Floyd-esque space rock peppered with Daft Punk-inspired vocoders and lush orchestral flourishes.© TiVo

Like everybody else, Lana Del Rey is playing hide-and-seek with quarantine. For her seventh album, the New Yorker based in Los Angeles has opted for hushed intimacy, bedroom melodies and confessional arrangements. With Chemtrails Over the Country Club, her pop is folkier than ever, although the echo and reverb in which her exquisite, sensual and hypnotic voice basks set her high above the clouds. This folk idiom fascinates her to the point that she closes out this record (with some help from Natalie Mering aka Weyes Blood and Zella Day) with a magnificent cover of Joni Mitchell's For Free, taken from her album Ladies of the Canyon (1970). There are also those guitars with an air of the Laurel Canyon 70's scene about them on Not All Who Wander Are Lost, and the equally pure guitar sounds that open Yosemite. As usual, Lana Del Rey takes out her pen to decry the torments of celebrity and the star system, starting with White Dress which opens the album, regretting the good old days when she was a barmaid, unknown and listening to Sun Ra, Kings Of Leon and the White Stripes "when they were white hot". Further on, she offers up more references to the music history as on Breaking Up Slowly (a duet with Nikki Lane) where she addresses the marital storms between those two legends of country music, Tammy Wynette and George Jones. On song after song, this solitary amazon soldiers on, not battling for any particular cause, just doing what is right by her own lights ("Well, I don't care what they think. Drag racing my little red sports car. I'm not unhinged or unhappy, I'm just wild"). Chemtrails Over the Country Club shows above all that she excels in the art of storytelling, wielding her tweezers to fine-tune every detail of her lyrics. At 35, Lana Del Rey has arguably released her freest and most accomplished album. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz

Recorded on September 21, 2010 as Sting was smack dab in the middle of his Symphonicities tour, Live in Berlin -- available as a CD/DVD set, a Blu Ray, and a condensed single-disc CD -- offers further orchestral reimaginings of Sting’s songbook, retaining a healthy chunk of the songs on the 2010 album Symphonicities and finding room for other highlights from his past, both obscure and quite familiar (“Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” “Russians,” “King of Pain,” “Every Breath You Take”all pop up on the video). Compared to the studio album, the symphonic flourishes don’t seem quite as overwhelming -- the attention is drawn to Sting and his songs, not to the orchestrations -- and the show is paced expertly, turning Live in Berlin into a bit of sophisticated comfort food for longtime Sting fans. © Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

It's been three years since Machine Head released Unto the Locust, widely considered the mainstream metal album of 2011. That was no small feat: four years earlier it had been preceded by 2007's The Blackening, which is arguably regarded as their magnum opus. Bloodstone & Diamonds is the first MH offering without founding bassist Adam Duce; he has been replaced by former Sanctity guitarist Jared MacEachern. In keeping with the restless musical vision of MH, this set is wildly ambitious. Produced by frontman and guitarist Robb Flynn with Juan Urteaga, and mixed by Colin Richardson, it clocks in at over 70 minutes through 12 tracks. Bloodstone & Diamonds is, thankfully, bone-crunching in numerous places, but its depth and breadth are considerable, its dark, sometimes menacing vibe crosses the divergent paths of its predecessors, yet is in keeping with their signature sound. There are loads of thrash and killer hard rock, though not as much groove metal as some longtime fans might like. Opener "And Now We Die," with its layered soundscape intro and woven strings, clocks moves through phases that combine all three of these dynamics. First single "Killers and Kings," with its unrelenting crack and roar, has a hooky, chanted chorus and a walloping thrash riff that drive it. "Night of the Long Knives," a narrative about the Manson murders, is one of the ugliest tracks MH has ever cut. The twin leads, reverbed drums, and slamming bassline/guitar vamp are careening death metal. The gorgeous Tibetan-style monastic chant that introduces "Sail Into the Black" belies a simple modal melody with droning, fingerpicked, acoustic guitars, sparse pianos, and strings, for four minutes before the punishing big noise takes over for its final half. "Beneath the Silt," with its growled and clean lead vocals, is heavy on the groove, while "Gamer Over" is overdriven hard rock with an excellent vocal. Between them is the startling "In Comes the Flood," with a chamber string intro and a female backing chorale singing "America the Beautiful," with symphonic metal interludes and blasting drums. It eventually becomes a huge cinematic elegy. The set closes with the martial death metal anthem that is the raging "Take Me Through the Fire." Given its range, variety, and length, Bloodstone & Diamonds is a labyrinthine musical and atmospheric journey full of textural and dynamic twists and turns. At times it's even exhausting. That's hardly a bad thing. Given how closely woven these tracks are, the album requires attention -- and numerous listenings -- to fully appreciate what is on offer. Here Machine Head take one sonic attack and push toward and through the boundaries of another. This set is a major go; it extends the qualitative trajectory of The Blackening and Unto the Locust. © Thom Jurek /TiVo

On her debut album, Goddess, Banks sounds like the logical conclusion of several 2010s musical trends: her moody, confessional lyrics echo Lorde, Lykke Li, and Lana Del Rey, while the downtempo sonics recall cutting-edge R&B talents like Tinashe, FKA Twigs, and her former tourmate the Weeknd. Since she combines so many familiar-sounding elements, it's not surprising that Goddess sometimes sounds a little generic. That feeling is emphasized by how much musical ground the album spans as it ranges from piano ballads (such as the Justin Parker-produced, Adele-esque "You Should Know Where I'm Coming From") to starkly electronic tracks (the tense, finger-snapping "Stick"). Like some of her inspirations and contemporaries, Banks' music sometimes gets too murky for its own good, but Goddess' best moments allow her personality to shine. On songs like the title track, she crafts a persona that's sexy, brooding, and more than a little dismissive; on "Brain"'s chorus ("I can see you struggling/Boy, don't hurt your brain/Thinking what you're gonna say"), she's a lot dismissive. Goddess also includes several songs that already appeared on the London EP, and their inclusion pushes the album's length to well over an hour, adding to the feeling that it could use more focus. While tracks such as "Change" and "Waiting Game" still sound good, newer songs like the brashly romantic "Fuck Em Only We Know," the high-drama "Beggin for Thread," and gently intimate "Warm Water" are much more immediate. While Goddess could have used some better editing, it still reveals glimpses of an artist who could shape the sounds of the times instead of just reflecting them.© Heather Phares /TiVo

Out of prison and -- as evidenced by a huge number of posts on social networking sites -- spending his free time in front of a computer, Falling in Reverse frontman Ronnie Radke explained Fashionably Late on Twitter, by typing "When people hear the new stuff though I promise you they will lose their mind. It's light years ahead of my last album." How right he was. Inspired by the first time he heard Dr. Dre's The Chronic, Radke decided to flip the script and take his band's sound to new places by incorporating hip-hop elements. So for "Alone," explosive emo-punk/post-hardcore choruses are sandwiched by rap breakdowns, in which the tattooed rocker proclaims, "Man, I've been in rap since I was shitting in Pampers/Climb the ladder to the top and now I'm shitting on rappers" and "I find it kind of funny what you say in your tweets/But when we're face to face, you got nothing to say to me." It's a misguided move to be sure, reminiscent of Tommy Lee's time in Methods of Mayhem, and the peculiarity is only magnified when he and his band (bassist Ron Ficarro, drummer Ryan Seaman, and guitarists Jacky Vincent and Derek Jones) switch styles between emo, metalcore, rap, and dubstep over the course of "Rolling Stone"'s three minutes and 50 seconds. Falling in Reverse deserve credit for their musical versatility on Fashionably Late, especially if one were to compare the stylistic differences between the blistering "Self-Destruct Personality," the cute 8-bit-inspired pop of "Game Over," and the outlaw country skiffle of "Drifter." However, on a whole, the album doesn't quite measure up to be the brilliant crossover that Radke expected.© Jason Lymangrover /TiVo

The English video game/speed/neo-classical power metal enthusiasts' first-ever "best of," the aptly named Killer Elite manages to cram 22 of the band's mightiest moments into a single collection -- that's two discs and a bonus DVD if you're into physical product. Hearing the group's vast catalog parsed into choice bits actually makes for the most compelling Dragonforce outing to date, as Killer Elite not only features the most delicious cuts of meat, it spans two different eras of the band: the ZP Theart-fronted breakout years, and the more recent, Marc Hudson-led era -- Herman Li and Sam Totman, Dragonforce's co-founders and co-shredders, are the band's through line and heart and soul, with the former serving up high-wire circus act-worthy solos and the latter following suit while also serving as the chief songwriter. Opening with the Guitar Hero-approved seven-minute epic "Through the Fire and Flames" from 2006's Inhuman Rampage, which is more or less the band's signature tune, Killer Elite checks off all of the boxes, offering up an all-killer-no-filler set of fantasy-driven power metal anthems, with highlights arriving via fan favorites like "Heroes of Our Time," "Seasons," "Last Journey Home," "Operation Ground and Pound," "Cry Thunder," and "Valley of the Damned." The collection also includes three live recordings, "Fields of Despair," "Three Hammers," and "Starfire," and the three songs culled from the band's 2003 debut Valley of the Damned ("Heart of a Dragon," "Black Fire," and "Valley of the Damned), have been newly remastered. A deluxe edition of Killer Elite that features a DVD containing all of the group's videos is also available.© James Christopher Monger /TiVo

After introducing her lightly rustic, '70s-inflected songs and distinctively lithe, Parton-tinged voice on 2020's Return, Bristol, U.K.-based Katy J Pearson went on a self-prescribed nature retreat of sorts while forced off the road due to pandemic shutdowns. When she was recharged and ready in late 2021 to write and record her second album, it was with a drive to experiment and expand her sound. Consequently, in addition to rejoining producer Ali Chant from her debut, she enlisted Dan Carey of breakout indie/post-punk label Speedy Wunderground to weigh in on select songs. The resulting Sound of the Morning gathers gentle folk, driving folk-rock, and steely post-punk on an album united by an assertive, searching leader. All of the above come together on "Float," an album centerpiece that Pearson co-wrote with Oliver Wilde (Pet Shimmers) and which features Morgan Simpson of Speedy Wunderground signee Black Midi on drums. After a spacy synth intro, it shifts to bowed bass-accompanied acoustic strumming and a strong vocal melody before quickly collecting sturdy drums, rumbling guitar distortion, raindrop-like keys, lilting backing vocals, and fiddle, as if the discord is the point by the time it reaches a final chorus that's tired of waiting. Carey's input is even more conspicuous on songs like "Alligator" (featuring Honeyglaze drummer Yuri Shibuichi) and the nervy "Confession." The latter song opens with dingy synths and a repeated bass note that sets a brisk tempo for a punky verse that has Pearson recalling a memorable point of conflict. As the track progresses, warmer timbres including strummed guitar, horns, and Pearson's own regretful delivery add complexity to the memory, although, ultimately, sleek timbres and relentless rhythms win out ("But you just wouldn't listen"). In between "Confession" and "Float" is the sharply contrasting "The Hour," whose haunted, fingerpicked folk and mournful vocal draw on troubadour tradition. Everything else falls somewhere in between, and somehow, from its pastoral opening title track to its glistening rock closer ("Willow's Song"), Sound of the Morning makes sense, through acknowledging struggle and uplifting with a gumption and determination that's reflected in its design. © Marcy Donelson /TiVo

All the greats have dabbled in such projects. Bowie with Pinups, Johnny Cash with American IV: The Man Comes Around, Lennon with Rock & Roll, Metallica with Garage Inc, Cat Power with The Covers Record, Meshell Ndegeocello with Ventriloquism, Patti Smith with Twelve, Costello with Almost Blue and hundreds more. Nevertheless, the cover album remains a risky project that rarely stands out in an artist’s discography. With California Son, Morrissey works namely to unearth unexpected, obscured or even forgotten songs. The ex-Smiths singer’s favourite artists (New York Dolls, Patti Smith, Roxy Music, Bowie, Sparks etc.) are known to many yet are nowhere to be found on this album. With the help of seven collaborators (LP, Ed Droste of Grizzly Bear, Ariel Engle of Broken Social Scene, Petra Haden, Sameer Gadhia of Young the Giant, Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day and Lydia Night of the Regrettes), Moz excels particularly on tracks by Roy Orbison, Melanie, Laura Nyro, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Bob Dylan, the 5th Dimension but also Jobriath, Phil Ochs, Tim Hardin, Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon. His voice acts as a driving force and is often exquisite, mastering each title (it’s astonishing on Dylan’s Only a Pawn in their Game). Above all, it’s a record we recommend to all Morrissey fans. © Max Dembo/Qobuz