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One underrated highlight of the classic 1984 science-fiction film The Terminator was the marvelous synthesizer score by Brad Fiedel. Side one of The Terminator is comprised of six compositions by Fiedel, who once served as a keyboardist for Hall & Oates briefly in the mid-1970s. "The Terminator Theme" is a spectacular piece of haunting synthesizer music; each layer is perfectly effective, especially the deceptively simple melody line. "Tunnel Chase" is bombastically chilling while "Love Scene" is a soft, mournful piano-based version of the main theme; its bittersweet feel corresponds nicely to the pivotal scene that it supports. Fiedel's synthesizer work on "Factory Chase" is full of glassy squeals and scary bursts, and Ross Levinson adds touches of electric violin. Side two consists of generic, mid-'80s synthesizer-based, dance-oriented pop/rock, but that makes sense since most of these songs were used in club scenes in the film. Tahnee Cain and Tryanglz contribute three songs (Cain, aka Tane Cain, was married to keyboardist Jonathan Cain of the Babys and Journey); all three have typical hard-rock rhythm guitar and flashy solos, but the best one is "Burnin' in the Third Degree." The Jay Ferguson and 16mm cut "Pictures of You" is really only notable because the emphasis on quirky synthesizers is so different from Ferguson's solo rock hits "Thunder Island" and "Shakedown Cruise." The hyperactive Linn Van Hek song "Intimacy" is a mixture of latter-day new wave and primitive, early techno. .© Bret Adams /TiVo

Los Angeles-via-Michigan folk-rockers Lord Huron make their major-label debut with 2018's Vide Noir, their third album overall. Following the mainstream success brought to them by their platinum single, "The Night We Met," the quartet was signed by Republic Records, where their sepia-soaked epics received a heavy tonal makeover from mixing engineer Dave Fridmann (the Flaming Lips, Tame Impala). Darker in both mood and content than either of their previous outings, Vide Noir's English translation is "Black Void" and centers around themes of depression and heartbreak. © Timothy Monger /TiVo

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Her voice is already a shrine by itself. A shrine in which all the world standards shine brightly. But this time, the shrine is for Stacey Kent a carpet of strings. With I Know I Dream, the singer from New Jersey makes the experience even silkier. Recorded in the famous Angel Studios in London with a phalanx of sixty musicians and meticulously produced by Tommy Lawrence and Jim Tomlinson (Mister Stacey Kent in real life), this album offers rearranged themes to reach some sort of nirvana of depth, intimacy and delight. A true grace that above all avoids the trappings into which the vocal jazz discs sometimes fall… Where the repertoire is concerned, Stacey Kent remembers her love of jazz, of French songs (Juliette Gréco, Léo Ferré and Nino Ferrer come to mind) and Brazilian music (Tom Jobim). As always with her, there’s a love of storytelling and a deep passion for language and words. These are essential things that Stacey Kent perfectly merges in the ocean of strings of this rare pearl of a disc. © CM/Qobuz

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France's biggest-selling home-grown female artist, Mylène Farmer's eighth studio album, Bleu Noir, is the first of her career without the input of long-term collaborator Laurent Boutonnat. Instead, the near 50-year-old diva has assembled an array of hotshot producers including RedOne (Lady Gaga), experimental British outfit Archive, and Moby on 12 tracks that combine her trademark melancholic lyrics with a slightly more commercial electro-pop sound, as on the singles "Ouis Mais... Non," "Lonely Lisa," and the title track, as well as two English-language songs, "Light Me Up" and "Inseparables."© Jon O'Brien /TiVo

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France's Benjamin Biolay left behind his provocative Buenos Aires cycle after two acclaimed albums, Palermo Hollywood in 2016 and the platinum-certified Volver in 2017). Grand Prix is nostalgic and unquestionably autobiographical. Its title references Formula 1 racing's excitement, drama, heroes, and tragedies. "Grand Prize" artfully contrasts racing with his own life experiences and the sacrifices he's made in pursuit of art. Of course his romantic life plays a major part: Ex-wife Chiara Mastroianni makes two guest appearances, former lover Keren Ann makes another, and current girlfriend, actress Anaïs Demoustier, assists on two others. The younger Biolay loved the Smiths, Happy Mondays, New Order, and the Strokes and he pays homage to them all and more, with a small band, analog synths, complete guitar and drum takes, and live vocals in songs that caress elements of Krautrock, post-punk, Brit-and electro-pop, Euro-disco, chanson, and MPB. Single "Comment Est Ta Peine," with Demoustier, opens with a disco-phonic synth similar to Daft Punk's "Get Lucky." However, the organic drums, sharp, funky guitars, and rigid bassline are adamantly rockist. Biolay's lyrics enquire about his lover's existential pain, contrasting it egotistically and ironically with his own. Mastroianni appears on the poignant yet hooky "Visage Pâle," where Biolay claims with too much protestation that "I have less appetite than sincerity/Love has a price that I can no longer pay…." On "Comme Une Voiture Volée," guitars ring with longing and excitement (think M83!) as drums and swirling synths propel the mix up and out. His lyrics offer only longing: "My heart is like an old engine when you lift the bonnet. You're as beautiful as a stolen car.…" The chanson ballad "Vendredi 12" questions a lost lover's memories while betraying the depths of his own abjection and loneliness. The title track is introduced by a nostalgic organ and distinctly "French rock" dancefloor beat. It's an uptempo elegy for Formula 1 driver Jules Bianchi, who died from his racing injuries at age 24. For "Papillon Noir," with Demoustier, he channels New Order's dancefloor rock beautifully. Again, despite the joy in the mix, his lyrics are resigned to always being in a temporary place when it comes to love: "I am an evening visitor, I am the vestiges of the dark sun/I am the night watchman, I am the bizarre boy...who has nothing to do/I am your only alibi, your temporary libido…." Closer "Interlagos (Saudade)" touches on the 1994 death of Brazilian Formula 1 driver Ayrton Senn, then revels in Biolay's own tears, joys, and small victories; it's a dreamy lament, complete with choirs, strings, and shuffling percussion, elevated by the presence of his daughter Anna (credited as "Bambi") on backing vocals. Ultimately, Grand Prix is Biolay's finest album since 2009's La Superbe, if not his best overall, and is easily his most revealing and vulnerable. No longer the enfant terrible of modern chanson, the singer, songwriter, and producer is now one of France's most evocative -- and necessary -- artists.© Thom Jurek /TiVo

How nice it is to find a musician who doesn’t exhaust himself by releasing loads of overly long tracks! We find ten songs here, and not one of them exceeds four and a half minutes. The result is a beautiful, compelling album that recalls the 1970s and 80s. Patrick Watson has a gift for structure and a taste for purity, which he proved in his enchanting album Adventures in Your Own Backyard in 2012. This new ten-episode fresco is drenched in melancholy, and the minimalist piano parts reflect the neoclassical influence that seems to be invading everything today, led by the likes of Jean-Michel Blais (Watson’s compatriot) and Alexis Ffrench to Dirk Maassen and, to a lesser extent, Nils Frahm. The influence is perhaps most obvious in the pulsing, repetitive track Broken, which feels like a slow tarantella with a beautiful dramatic rise. The next track Turn Out the Lights heals and soothes, releasing any previous tensions, particularly thanks to the melodic contours and more varied instrumentation. This new album Wave is largely homogeneous, enhanced by Patrick Watson’s husky, sensual voice. However, after the first nine nostalgia-tinged ethereal songs, one would never have expected such a lavish finale: Here Comes the River is like a present-day Imagine. It’s an unforgettable piece, and perhaps too short after all. © Pierre-Yves Lascar/Qobuz

Oud player Brahem has established his own little niche with the instrument; his music, strongly Arab-inflected, has the spare, chamber feel that makes it a perfect fit in the ECM catalog. He's a contemplative player, and this melding with piano and accordion suits his style perfectly, as notes and ideas draw out marvelously. The interplay between musicians is as delicate as lace -- thoughtful, with everyone listening as much as playing. It's a record with many moments of great beauty, like the exquisite piano on "C'est Ailleurs" or the filigree touches between accordion and piano that decorate and nudge along many of the tracks. Brahem is a superb, if reserved, musician, as are his colleagues: Francois Couturier on piano and Jean-Louis Matinier on accordion. Together they trace something exquisite, an experience for the eras and the heart.© TiVo