Chlöe 2023 By Heven Haile GENRE: Pop/R&BLABEL: Parkwood Entertainment / ColumbiaREVIEWED: March 31, 2023Beyoncé protégé Chloe Bailey is a generational talent, but the generic songwriting and chemistry-free features on her solo debut don’t make the case. We’re well acquainted with Chloe x Halle—“gospel-raised,” genre-bending wunderkinds who didn’t utter a curse word until their second studio album, 2020’s Ungodly Hour. […]

Boygenius 2023 By Cat Zhang GENRE: RockLABEL: InterscopeREVIEWED: March 31, 2023Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus devote their debut record to their singular bond. Each amplifies the other’s songwriting, enriches the detail, and heightens the emotion. The steadfast devotion between the women of Boygenius is a subject worthy of a dog-eared literary classic, one that’s passed […]

The Hold Steady By Stephen M. Deusner GENRE: RockLABEL: Positive Jams / Thirty TigersREVIEWED: April 1, 2023The Brooklyn band’s ninth album is vivid and weird: a celebration of second winds, unlikely comebacks, and undying rock’n’roll dreams. You can almost picture Skippers, the stripmall bar that serves as the setting for “Carlos Is Crying,” off the Hold […]