RECENT MUSIC REVIEWS

http://www.avclub.com/section/music/

• Superchunk: I Hate Music77
  A- When Superchunk says it hates music, don’t believe it.
• Ty Segall: Sleeper29
  A- The fuzz rocker quiets down and delivers his best album yet.
• No Age: An Object11
  B- Melodic noise-pop group returns with fewer melodies and less noise.
• Travis: Where You Stand46
  B Post-Britpop’s sensitive bards return with a compelling listen.
• Zola Jesus: Versions5
  B Singer-songwriter trades synths for strings on these Guggenheim-commissioned arrangements.
• Washed Out: Paracosm68
  B Ernest Greene uses his hazy, sun-bleached sounds to create something utterly transporting.
• Bloc Party: The Nextwave Sessions26
  B- Another band that might have been settles in for the grind.
• Sam Phillips: Push Any Button27
  C+ Singer-songwriter takes a break from scoringBunheads to record her own pop-rock tunes.
• The Civil Wars: The Civil Wars100
  B+ Amid well-publicized tensions, The Civil Wars return.
• The Polyphonic Spree: Yes, It’s True40
  B Orchestral pop rockers tighten things up without sacrificing their reach.
• Eric Copeland: Joke In The Hole7
  B One-third of Black Dice balances the captivating and oppressive elements of his solo sound.
• Pop. 1280: Imps of Perversion41
  B+ Goth-punk miscreants get even more lecherous.
• Backstreet Boys In A World Like This 236
  C Boy-band survivors come up short.
• Robin Thicke Blurred Lines 267
  B+ Orchestral pop rockers tighten things up without sacrificing their reach.
• Joan Of Arc: Testimonium Songs14
  C- Can Joan Of Arc’s score to a theater production stand on its own?
• Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros: Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros160
  C- The kaleidoscopic cult leader falters under the weight of his cause.
• Gogol Bordello: Pura Vida Conspiracy45
  B The Gypsy punk band’s Rolodex of musical influences now includes mariachi and country. 
• Grant Hart: The Argument37
  A- Half of Hüsker Dü’s legendary songwriting team retakes his territory.
• Fuck Buttons: Slow Focus28
  B+ The electronic group takes precision control of its complex drones.
• The Love Language: Ruby Red2
  B- Pop craftsman’s quirks get smothered in collaborative effort.
• Pet Shop Boys: Electric98
  B+ Synthpop vets amp up the BPMs, show young’uns how it’s done.
• Mayer Hawthorne: Where Does This Door Go18
  B- Mayer Hawthorne replaces ’60s Motown with ’70s sophistication on third album.
• David Lynch: The Big Dream62
  B- The filmmaker finds an electro-blues groove that’s as comfortable as he’s likely to get as a musician.
• Daughn Gibson: Me Moan43
  C The singer’s second album falls shy of living up to his promising debut, sacrificing atmosphere for misguided bombast.
• Speedy Ortiz: Major Arcana74
  A- A Massachusetts band’s full-length debut emulates ’90s indie-rock heroes but concocts something new.
• Hebronix: Unreal9
  C+ Yuck’s former frontman searches for his solo legs.
• Jay-Z: Magna Carta Holy Grail501
  C- There’s a reason why caper films end once the heroes hit their payday.
• Wale: The Gifted74
  C Wale completes his break from the past.
• Ciara: Ciara31
  C+ The struggling singer misses an opportunity.
• Smith Westerns: Soft Will37
  C Glam-rock prodigies grow up, get tired.
• Dessa: Parts Of Speech19
  B A literary album whose parts are greater than the sum of its whole.
• Bosnian Rainbows: Bosnian Rainbows26
  B- The latest project from The Mars Volta’s Omar Rodríguez-López is a flawed, yet promising start.
• Palms: Palms8
  B Members of Deftones and Isis make it look breezy.
• Mavis Staples: One True Vine12
  A- Gospel legend pairs with Jeff Tweedy for another collection of soulful covers.
• Sigur Rós: Kveikur117
  B+ Iceland’s most majestic group turns downward.