Prog rock fans, take heed. '70s prog darlings Pavlov's Dog are back with the wonderful Wonderlust . These new original songs are epic and grandiose, dark and melancholic, jazzy and cool. There are also moments of rock 'n' roll rambunctiousness, with lovely violins and folksy elements — see lead single "Jet Black Cadillac." This is an inventive and exciting album that'll thrill fans in the market for smart, classic, eclectic progressive rock.
LA quartet Rocket make quite the impression with their stunning debut album, R Is For Rocket . The band writes noisy, compelling, painfully beautiful songs that will have your heart in your throat. Think My Bloody Valentine if they decided to make a punk rock record. This fuzzed out, hypnotic album is one of the best things you'll hear this year.
Loukeman's SD-3 is one of the liveliest, most joyous electronic releases of the year. It's a melange of styles – folktronica, ambient, electronic pop, hip-hop, synthpop, and R&B – all tossed in a shaker and poured out into an effervescent, potent cocktail. It's dreamy and lovely, danceable and unexpected. Imaginative and entrancing, this is an album that'll put a smile on your face and make you long for the dance floor.
Ostensibly a popstar, Spanish singer Rosalía is so much more. Her new album, Lux , is intellectual, experimental, and one-of-a-kind. Recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, arranged by Pulitzer- and Grammy-winning contemporary classical artist and composer Caroline Shaw, and with a cast of collaborators including Bjork, Yves Tumor, fado singer Carminho, flamenco singer Estrella Morente, Spanish singer/composer Sílvia Pérez Cruz, and American regional Mexican music trio Yahritza y su Esencia, you know this album's going to be special. Rosalía sings of faith and heartbreak, with lyrics in her native Spanish and Catalan, plus Arabic, English, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Mandarin, Portuguese, Sicilian, and Ukrainian. Unexpected, soaring, and stirring, this is the cinematic modern-classical-meets-experimental-pop-with-religious-undertones album of your dreams.