Lady Gaga - The Fame Monster (Interscope) The Fame Monster, like The Fame before it, is unfuckwithable where the big, banging club tracks are concerned. Lady Gaga is praised for the theatrical, visual element of her performance, but she really does...

The Middle Eight - Love EP (self released) The Love EP is such a strange sound in the context of 2009 indie rock. It's not skuzzy, purposely camouflaged in lo-fidelity or derailed by gimmicks. In fact, it's all "la-la" choruses and straightforward...

Coming Soon - Ghost Train Tragedy (Kitchen) The bad news is that Ghost Train Tragedy is, at fifteen tracks, about five tracks too long. And even at ten tracks, there would still be some filler. The good news is that when Coming Soon is on, they are...

Califone - All My Friends Are Funeral Singers (Dead Oceans) Califone is a sophisticated band with an old school sound. Their new album All My Friends Are Funeral Singers demonstrates how they have mastered the mixing of traditional blues and soul...

Thavius Beck - Dialogue (Big Dada) He's probably better known for his work with other people than for what comes out under his own name, but Dialogue is a solid collection that spends time on both sides of the line between hip-hop beatmaking and...