SIA, “Reasonable Woman.” Pop star Sia has been writing memorable pop songs for both herself and a bevy of other marquee artists for years. Her latest, Reasonable Woman, is a testament to her skill. The 15-song set dazzles with well-built pop songs. Reasonable Woman Sia Atlantic, May 3 7/10…

P.O.D., “Veritas.” The members of P.O.D., or Payable On Death, wear their heart on their sleeve on the band’s 11th album, Veritas, and the result is one of their most urgent, aggressive and heavy statements. Veritas P.O.D. Mascot, May 3 7/10 Get the album on Amazon Music. After recording…

Justice, “Hyperdrama.” Things are ramping up quickly for Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay, the French electronic music duo better known as Justice. The group’s latest album arrives on the heals of an appearance at Coachella, often a good indicator of upward trajectory. While the pair have made music…

Neil Young and Crazy Horse, “FU##IN’ UP.” There’s a moment on FU##IN’ UP, the new live album from Neil Young and Crazy Horse, when a snarling squall of distorted guitars subsides momentarily, ringing out like the golden rays of a brilliant sunset. Young’s voice – tender, fragile and now slightly…

St. Vincent, “All Born Screaming.” Over the past decade, St. Vincent has ventured into all kinds of new sounds—from electro-pop on 2017’s MASSEDUCTION to ‘70s psychedelic rock on 2021’s Daddy’s Home—mastering every single one of them. But her new LP, All Born Screaming, sees a return to form: quirky,…

Iron & Wine, “Light Verse.” With his first album in seven years, singer-songwriter Sam Beam has put together a thought-provoking Iron & Wine comeback. Self-produced and mixed and engineered by Dave Way, Light Verse examines middle age and its under-appreciated upsides. The acceptance of getting older comes with new,…

Taylor Swift, “Tortured Poets Department.” It didn’t take long for Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department to completely take over the internet. Did it really leak or was that an AI trick? Do real fans listen early? Are these songs about Matty Healy? The Tortured Poets Department Taylor Swift Republic,…

Alien Ant Farm, “mAntras.” “It’s never gonna feel like the first time,” sings Dryden Mitchell of Alien Ant Farm on the opening track of the the band’s latest album, mAntras, the band’s first new material since 2015. mAntras Alien Ant Farm Megaforce, April 26 8/10 Get the album on Amazon…

Pearl Jam, “Dark Matter.” Pearl Jam is easily America’s most reliable rock band. Dark Matter  Pearl Jam Republic, April 19 8/10 Get the album on Amazon Music. The last survivors of the early ’90s golden age in the Pacific Northwest have nothing to prove after 33 years. Yet they…

Ian Hunter, “Defiance Part 2: Fiction.” Artwork by Johnny Depp. Almost exactly one year ago, Ian Hunter showed us what he’d been up to during the COVID-driven quarantine, enlisting other notable musician peers to help put meat on the bones of demo tracks he’d already worked up. The resulting…