Dehd Take Yet Another Step Forward on ‘Poetry’
Dehd exude a youthful charm that is hard to replicate on Poetry. They are infectious and their sunny melodies and sincerity make their music compelling.
pop rock
Hana Vu Revels in ‘Romanticism’
Romanticism emerges as a whole, as Hana Vu’s space to ask some big questions, though the answers she’s receiving are mostly ambivalent at best.
‘Voulez Vous’: ABBA’s Poptimist Manifesto at 45
On Voulez Vous, ABBA went disco and created a turbo-charged version of their music. The raucous choruses of Voulez Vouz preview a decade of pop.
Meet the Beaches’ Beating Heart: Drummer Eliza Enman-McDaniel
Getting heard in a band of super-powered women can be challenging, but the Beaches’ Eliza Enman-McDaniel does so much more than bang her drum all day.
New Album Takes the Lemon Twigs Into Pop’s Golden Years
The Lemon Twigs’ A Dream Is All We Know displays scholarly mastery of the complex techniques their forbears invented. The sheer musicality is prodigious.
Extra Arms Set Out to Own Summer with ‘Radar’
Detroit’s Extra Arms make power pop look easy on their catchy, energetic new record, Radar. It’s a half-hour of no-skips, life-affirming, and no-frills rock.
Michael Feuerstack Matches Questions with Infectious Grooves
In Eternity Mongers, Michael Feuerstack proves his mettle as a fine, seasoned songwriter and captures soulful innocence and throws in killer hooks.
Aaron Lee Tasjan Is Seriously Funny on ‘Stellar Evolution’
Aaron Lee Tasjan often goes for a laugh with broad puns and subtle references to pop culture. Yes, he is funny, but he is also serious, seriously funny.
Chastity Belt Ruminate on Insecurities on ‘Live Laugh Love’
Chastity Belt are dovish and disarming on Live Laugh Love, which explores the self. It’s unadulterated self-expression in its purest form.
Those Days Are Gone Forever: Steely Dan’s ‘Pretzel Logic’ at 50
Steely Dan’s 50-year-old third album, Pretzel Logic, conceals its dark satirical vision of modern society beneath immaculate studio production.
Jack Antonoff Searches for Bleachers on ‘Bleachers’
Bleachers finds its primary strength in its serenity. Gentle moments of introspection about love’s redemptive power illuminate some of the brightest moments.
This Is Your Life: XTC’s ‘Oranges & Lemons’ at 35
In 1989, XTC released Oranges & Lemons, one of their finest. There are nods to trippy 1960s touchstones, but it’s more of a lush, power-pop celebration.