100 Lovers , Devotchka 2011

For more than a decade, DeVotchKa has melded its influences from Eastern European wedding bands to Norteno ballads into an authentic and totally original blend of popular music. The band s haunting, romantic sound evokes timeless images, attracting thousands of fans to their sold-out live shows. DeVotchKa s sound has proved particularly attractive to filmmakers, who have used DeVotchka songs to score countless films and commercials, most famously Little Miss Sunshine, for which they received a Grammy nod. With the release of the band's fifth album, 100 Lovers, the band returns to the epic settings of the Arizona desert with producer Craig Schumacher (Calexico, Neko Case) to create a new collection of
haunting stories, with songs like The Man From San Sebastian delivering on their intriguing titles with enigmatic lyrics and cinematic soundscapes.(ANTI)

Several Shades of Why , J Mascis 2011

2011 solo album from the Dinosaur Jr. mainman. Nearly all acoustic Several Shades Of Why was created with the help of a few friends. Notable amongst them are Kurt Vile, Sophie Trudeau (A Silver Mount Zion), Kurt Fedora (long-time collusionist), Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene), Ben Bridwell (Band Of Horses), Pall Jenkins (Black Heart Procession), Matt Valentine (The Golden Road), and Suzanne Thorpe (Wounded Knees). Together in small mutable groupings, they conjure up classic sounds ranging from English-tinged Folk to drifty, West Coast-style singer/songwriterism. But every track, every note even, bears that distinct Mascis watermark, both in the shape of the tunes and the glorious rasp of the vocals. Ten brilliant tunes that quietly grow and expand until they fill your brain with the purest pleasure.(Sub Pop)

Blood Pressures , The Kills 2011

The Kills, UK/US duo of Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart, release Blood Pressures, the highly anticipated follow-up to their critically acclaimed third album, Midnight Boom. This album keeps their basic sound intact searing guitars, driving rhythms and sexually charged lyrical savvy. The 11 tracks on Blood Pressures find The Kills embracing a fuller sound; there is heavier instrumentation and layered, huge-sounding harmonies with Jamie and Alison uniting in their trademark singsong vocal style over tom heavy primitive beats.(Domino)

The King of Limbs , Radiohead 2011

2011 release, the eighth album from the enormously successful and influential British band. As usual, the album was produced by longtime co-hort Nigel Godrich. Recorded on and off throughout 2010, the album is a cohesive collection of songs that were laid down by the band in a more relaxed fashion than their ambitious In Rainbows long-player. The album's title refers to an oak tree in Wiltshire's Savernake Forest, thought to be 1,000 years old.(Tbd Records)

Endgame , Rise Against 2011

Limited edition pressing. 2011 album from the Chicago-based Punk act. The lyrics of the album touch on real world events, such as Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. According to Mcllrath, although the lyrics discuss grim topics, they actually take on a positive view and were written from the perspective of: 'What if the place on the other side of this transition is a place we'd all rather be living in?' Mcllrath tweeted a clarifying message stating that the record is not a concept record and, fret not, has absolutely nothing to do with the Dixie Chicks. The first single from the album is 'Help Is On The Way'. (Geffen Records)

R. Strauss Lieder-Poesie 2011

Artist: Diana Damrau
Composer: Richard Strauss
Conductor: Christian Thielemann
Orchestra: Munich Philharmonic Orchestra

"Strauss loved female voices," says Damrau, "and he explores some extreme possibilities in these many-layered songs, each with its different point of view. Sensitivity to the words is vital to telling the story of each song, to capturing the rapid changes of mood and all the colors." (Diana Damrau)

Labour of Lust , Nick Lowe 2011

As the bassist and primary songwriter for Brinsley Schwarz, Nick Lowe was one of the catalysts of the pub rock phenomenon in the early 1970s. As the co-founder and house producer at Stiff Records, he would help create the blueprint for the modern indie rock label and usher in British punk and new wave, helming historic recordings for The Damned, Elvis Costello, and The Pretenders. Here, his landmark second solo album Labour of Lust gets the deluxe reissue treatment, sporting an expanded 12pg. booklet with period photos, new essays and artwork by groundbreaking graphic artist Barney Bubbles. The reissue also includes Nick's biggest US hit ''Cruel To Be Kind'', the originally U.K.-only ''Endless Grey Ribbon'' and U.S.-only ''American Squirm''; plus bonus B-side ''Basing Street.'' LOL is the only of Lowe's solo albums to hold the distinction of featuring Nick's Rockpile cohorts Dave Edmunds, Billy Bremner and Terry Williams on every track. Originally released in 1979 and out of print for nearly twenty years, the album has been remastered from the original source, reintroducing this masterpiece to a new generation of pop music obsessives.(Yep Roc Records)

Long Player Late Bloomer , Ron Sexsmith 2011

A singer-songwriter acclaimed by a galaxy of artists from Bob Dylan to Elton John, Chris Martin to Michael Buble, Steve Earle to Lucinda Williams for his insight into the human heart and a melodic purity (to paraphrase admirer Elvis Costello) unheard since the heyday of Paul McCartney, you ll find him straight after the Sex Pistols in any self-respecting encyclopedia of modern music. That s as close as Ron Sexsmith has ever got to in-yer-face hard rock. Until Now

For his 11th album, Long Player Late Bloomer, the award winning troubadour has paired himself with a fellow Canadian, the producer of bone-crunching classics by Metallica, Motley Crue and The Cult the genuinely named Bob Rock. The 13 tracks on the album that came out of this partnership each and every one of them sound like honest-to-god hits.