“

Cynics may dismiss R.E.M.'s first-ever live CD as a way to run out their contract, and they may not be wrong. Despite the lack of a full-fledged live album in their catalog -- and some could call R.E.M. Live not quite an album, since it is a two-CD/one-DVD package that documents a concert the group gave at the Point Theatre in Dublin, Ireland, on February 27, 2006, so it's as much a video as an album -- there hasn't exactly been a paucity of official live releases, not with all the home videos, DVDs, and B-sides issued over the years (and this isn't even counting the numerous bootlegs).

”

1997 release, a four disc set on London packaged in a 6 x 10" gatefold digibook with an 80 page illustrated book. 81 tracks total, including all cuts from the albums "Unknown Pleasures" (1979), "Closer" (1980) & "Substance" (1988), seven of the nine studiorecordings on "Still" (1981), plus Peel session versions of Love Will Tear Us Apart, Exercise One & Colony, the version of As You Said that appeared as the uncredited track on New Order's Video 586' 12" single and last -but certainly not least- 35 previously unreleased gems comprised of live & rare versions of their absolute finest. Utterly brilliant.

California native Ramona Gonzalez first began her transcendent minimalist dance-pop escapades in the privacy of her own home in Los Angeles with the aid of her multitrack cassette recorder. She very quickly developed her own unique sound, taking inspiration from European experimental electronic music and U.S. R&B pop, and began performing live in the L.A. area under the moniker Nite Jewel.

“

Filter's debut reflects post-Nine Inch Nails state-of-the-art industrial pop, which means Short Bus is indeed more pop than industrial. The noise accentuates the songs instead of driving them. Filter's sense of melody is slighter than Trent Reznor's, yet they have the skill to craft shifting dynamics into hooks, as in the single "Hey Man, Nice Shot."

”

“

Indie Pop / Electronic tribute to the "Nevermind" album by Nirvana, celebrating last years anniversary of it. Not 100% serious, but fun to listen (esp. In Bloom) & a nice addition to your Nirvana collection.

”

“

Throughout it all, Cobain's songwriting is typically haunting, and its best moments rank among his finest work, but the over-amped dynamicism of the recording seems like a way to camouflage his dispiritedness -- as does the fact that he consigned such great songs as "Verse Chorus Verse" and "I Hate Myself and Want to Die" to compilations, when they would have fit, even illuminated the themes of In Utero. Even without those songs, In Utero remains a shattering listen, whether it's viewed as Cobain's farewell letter or self-styled audience alienation. Few other records are as willfully difficult as this.

”

“

In retrospect, Nevermind may seem a little too unassuming for its mythic status -- it's simply a great modern punk record -- but even though it may no longer seem life-changing, it is certainly life-affirming, which may just be better.

”

2012 album from the Britpop band. Start The Revolution Without Me is a reworking of their UK album The Future Is Medieval and contains tracks not available on that release. The band worked with producers Tony Visconti (David Bowie, Iggy Pop, T. Rex), Ethan Johns (Kings of Leon, Ray LaMontagne, Emmylou Harris) and Owen Morris (Oasis, The Verve) as well as trying their hand at producing their own tracks with drummer/songwriter Nick Hodgson at the controls. Out of this came Kaiser Chiefs' most forward thinking output to date. "Little Shocks" features a fantastically creepy keyboard riff, and sets the tone for the record's sonic electronic experimentations.

Iconic Irish singer-songwriter and performer Sinead O’Connor releases her brand new studio album ‘How About I Be Me (And You Be You)?’ through One Little Indian. Her ninth studio album, and the latest release in a career spanning 25 years and millions of record sales worldwide, ‘How About I Be Me (And You Be You)?’ is asshowstopping a performance as her silver jubilee deserves, and ranks as one of her best and most confident pieces of work so far. Produced by long-term collaborator John Reynolds, its ten tracks play like an encyclopaedic definition of O’Connor’s oeuvre: songs about love and loss, hope and regret, pain and redemption, anger and justice.

Andrew Bird's 2009 album Noble Beast felt like a career best, yet its follow-up is even better. Where Noble Beast examined the earth, Break It Yourself is an album of the sea, of shifting sands and surging waves, sparkling spray and soft, contemplative calm. You're constantly aware of the luxuriant spaciousness of the music, but particularly in the dramatic silences of Sifters, the relaxed pacing of Hole in the Ocean Floor and the slow tides of Lazy Projector. When the sound begins to soar in Desperation Breeds and Lusitania, the effect is one of heady rapture, while the dive into powerpop in Eyeoneye is absolutely exhilarating.

“

With their latest album, "The Wanderer", the Spanish quintet proves that impressive gothic metal need not hail from Scandinavia. The musicians revolving around vocalist Zuberoa Aznárez have refined the trademark sound first heard on their debut album "Secrets", and brought their latest work, "The Wanderer", to a whole new level. Diabulus in Musica unites heavy riffs with sensual melodies and appealing refrains. The backbone of the band is its powerful rhythm section, and most importantly a drummer who knows how to properly embellish songs with the finest of details.

”

“

Sea Change is the eighth studio album by American alternative rock artist Beck Hansen. Recorded over a two month period at Ocean Way Studios in Los Angeles with producer Nigel Godrich, the record includes themes of heartbreak and desolation, solitude and loneliness. "Lost Cause" and "Guess I'm Doing Fine" were released as singles, respectively. The album received overwhelmingly positive critical acclaim upon release, with several reviews regarding it as Beck's magnum opus. Reviewers parsed the change in style from the sonically experimental to simple and emotional.

”