Rock
With 'Folklore,' Taylor Swift Marks Off Her Past And Enters A New Phase
Swift's eighth studio album came as a surprise. In the isolation of the past months, she's cooked up a yeasty kind of sugar-free pop that rises above much recent music-making.
HAIM Radiates Sunniness In 'Women In Music Pt. III'
The new album by three Los Angeles sisters feels like it was meant to be blasted loud in your car as you try to time all the green lights along Sunset Boulevard.
Bob Dylan's 'Rough And Rowdy Ways' Breathes, Expands And Contracts
The good songs on Dylan's latest record inflate with interest; the mediocre songs start to shrink and slink away. And there's a striking amount of upbeat rhythm & blues on the album.
Brittany Howard Draws Listeners In With 'Jaime', A Very Personal Solo Album
The new album by the Alabama Shakes lead singer mixes autobiography with an exploration of different musical styles. Listening to Jaime is like discovering Howard as an artist all over again.
Wily And Clever, Billie Eilish's Debut Album Sounds Like No One Else
The 17-year-old California singer-songwriter's album, When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? keeps listeners guessing. Her frame of reference is vast — ranging from glam rock to folk music.
Robert Forster Gets Playful — And Intense — On 'Inferno'
The former co-leader of the Aussie band The Go-Betweens reflects on success and failure on his latest solo album. Critic Ken Tucker says Inferno is proof of Forster's credentials as a pop musician.
Harry Styles And Dan Auerbach Strive For Authenticity On 2 New Solo Albums
Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Styles' self-titled solo album, as well as Waiting on a Song, by Auerbach of The Black Keys. Tucker says the new albums "meet in a middle-ground of forced humility."