Korn changed the world with the release of their self-titled debut album. It was a record that would pioneer a genre, while the band’s enduring success points to a larger cultural moment. The band have continued to push the limits of the rock, alternative and metal genres in their newest release, Requiem, while remaining a pillar of influence for legions of fans and generations of artists around the globe.

Always sees Krasno venture into an elaborate mix of blues, funk, rock and soul -- a sunny, funky and laid back album combining the vibe of 1970s Laurel Canyon, swaths of Hammond B3 organ, a rhythm section that appear to be joined at the hip, and of course that punchy Eric Krasno guitar sound. It evokes the spirit of Sly Stone, D’Angelo, Lenny Kravitz, and, dare we say his name, Prince?

In The Aftermath is the deliciously depraved outcome of an all-night rock n' roll riot. The Queens, New York-based quintet escaped to record with a few handles of whiskey, and, in one 24-hour session, ran down the Stone's seminal first album of all originals, 1966's Aftermath. Tracked live in the studio with minimal overdubs, In The Aftermath is potent proof the five-piece group is one of the last great American rock n' roll bands.

These are love letters, distress signals, en plein air observations, and relaxation hymns, the collected transmissions of four people who have grown into relationships and parenthood and adult worry. But they are rendered with Animal Collective’s singular sense of exploratory wonder. Harmonies so rich you want to skydive through their shared air, textures so fascinating you want to decode their sorcery, rhythms so intricate you want to untangle their sources.

Bastille's wildly-ambitious new album is a tribute to tech times and a glimpse of what could be to come. Exploring both the opportunities of new technology and the dark side of lives lived online, it's as playful as it is thought-provoking, as dystopian as it is dancefloor-friendly and as electronic as the band has ever been. *Available on Indie Exclusive Yellow Vinyl*

Erin Rae shares an intimate, honest, and playful version of herself through her sophomore album. Produced by Jonathan Wilson, and recorded in the musically hallowed grounds of California’s Topanga Canyon, the album represents a sonic and inner shift for Rae. In it, she embraces more of her influences, like baroque-pop, cosmic country, and indie-folk songs while mirroring a more compassionate self-view she calls “accepting my humanness”.

Minneapolis indie pop rebels Hippo Campus return with their third full-length, LP3. Their strongest and most complete work yet is a freshly-inked portrait excavating young adulthood, identity and, more importantly, how that personal identity fits into a larger camaraderie. Subverting expectations as they always tend to do, this third outing is colorful, meaningful, and as existential as always, a real treat.

“We made the unabashed folk record that I have been wanting to make for years," says Jennings. "Kind of a love letter to the acoustic guitar and to musical intimacy… and features some rich and wonderful instrumentation including horns and strings. The cover art is a woven wall hanging that my wife Josie made that is hanging on our lakehouse wall. That sets the tone: warmth, home, and intimacy. Hope you enjoy!"

Wild Rivers pour their collective impressions about merging into their mid-20s – a strange, liminal age where it's easy to romanticize childhood – by looking back longingly upon the time when you are truly present and you're not having this forward-thinking vision where you're worried about the next thing. Sonically, the band pulls from a spectrum of sounds, imbuing pop, rock, indie, and folk.

WMBM is a grand display of immaculate musicianship, intricate songwriting, and raw emotion. Vocalist Eva Spence is one of the most dynamic and varied vocalists in the progressive metal scene, her gorgeous cleans and guttural screams are truly unique. There is a consistent theme throughout the record which is accompanied by a hauntingly beautiful grand piano -- the album feels like a living, breathing work of art.

A wildly inventive but utterly destructive onslaught of genre-defying extremity, Erebos is a giant leap forward. It’s a thrilling explosion of artful savagery, warped melodies and tumultuous atmospherics creating a powerful, defining statement from one of the most exciting bands of the modern era. From humble origins to undisputed heavyweight status, Venom Prison are now an unstoppable force.

On What Happens Next, roots singer-songwriter and guitarist Davy Knowles boldly steps forward with timeless and cohesive songwriting, sleek modern production, and a lyrical, play-for-the-song guitar approach informed from soul, folk, rock, and blues. It’s 12 songs are equally influenced by The Black Keys, Fantastic Negrito, Gary Clark Jr., as they are Muddy Waters, Junior Kimbrough, and R.L. Burnside.

11:11 is an unqualified triumph, an album that seizes listeners with hook-filled songs imbuing feelings of warmth, urgency, and poetic beauty, even as it asks some of life’s big and difficult questions. “It spends equal time on optimism, community, reaffirming what we are and how it’s our duty to look out for one another” says singer Evan Stephens Hall. “There’s anger, love, hope and grief. The record has all of that.”

Five years sober, creatively rejuvenated, and sagely insightful, Gales is ready for the fight of his career. Aptly, he calls his masterful new album, Crown. Here, the blues firebrand opens like never before, sharing his struggles with substance abuse, his hopes about a new era of sobriety and unbridled creativity, and his personal reflections on racism – all delivered with clarity and hope for positive change.

A fever dream in sonic form, The Alien Coast is the first album recorded in their hometown of Birmingham, AL. The bands fourth full-length is a dizzying convergence of rock & roll and R&B, psychedelia and stoner metal, gospel and jazz-funk. At turns explosive, elegant, and thrillingly unhinged - it makes for a majestic backdrop to the groups visceral exploration of the strangest dimensions of the human psyche.

Dawn FM is the fifth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter The Weeknd. The album is narrated by Jim Carrey, and features guest appearances from Tyler, the Creator and Lil Wayne. Majority of the production was handled by The Weeknd himself alongside Oneohtrix Point Never-who produced the majority of the tracks-as well as Max Martin, Oscar Holter, Calvin Harris, and Swedish House Mafia, among others.

With Swan Song, The Plot In You have laid their souls bare and offered us access to the most honest and intimate parts of themselves. Perhaps it’s their way of cleansing themselves, or them taking the opportunity to reassure us as the listener – and themselves – that life gets better when things are bleak. The record is harrowing and beautiful in equal measure, and one of the most important learning experiences this year will offer.

Although a gospel album has been a long-time dream for Cobb, it has only come to fruition now due to a near-death experience in July 2020, when the vehicle that he was driving, with his young son inside, got T-boned. Following in the footsteps of his country music heroes, his new album, And Now, Let’s Turn to Page… offers eight familiar hymns alongside an original song written with his wife. The collection feels reverent as well as rowdy, and completely in his comfort zone.

Alto saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins follows-up his acclaimed debut, Omega, with another striking album featuring his remarkable quartet with pianist Micah Thomas, bassist Daryl Johns, and drummer Kweku Sumbry. An hour-long suite comprised of 7 movements strives to bring them closer to complete vesselhood by the end, where the music would be entirely improvised and channeled collectively.

Lu's Jukebox is a six-volume series of mostly full-band performances recorded live at Ray Kennedy's Room & Board Studio in Nashville, TN. Each volume features a themed set of songs by other artists curated by the multi-Grammy award winner, Lucinda Williams. The series aired as ticketed shows in late 2020 with a portion of ticket sales benefitting independent music venues struggling to get by through the pandemic.

Over the course of a more than 40-year career, Steve Vai has routinely transformed what would appear to be outrageously impossible into something very, very possible... and still also pretty outrageous. Inviolate’s nine-song opus does indeed push the boundaries of instrumental guitar music as this time out, Vai quite literally invented not just a new guitar, but also a new guitar-playing technique.

The career defining album from Pennsylvania's heaviest, The Last Ten Seconds of Life is the sound of a band attempting to transcend the turning of tides within their scene. Straddling the Nu Metal, Rock, Death Metal and Downtempo genres in equal measure, TLTSOL have created a magnum opus of a record that will appeal to fans of Korn and Slipknot as much as it will to fans of Alice in Chains or Pantera.