Yak has built a reputation as a thrilling, unpredictable live band prone to throwing guitars crowdward during feedback-squelched noise pileups.

There isn’t much to fear and even less to like in David Farr’s psychological thriller, The Ones Below.

To those who’ve ignorantly discarded her as a one-season wonder on the back of 1996’s (still excellent) Trailer Park, whisper it quietly: Beth Orton has been continuing to deliver work of significant quality over the past 20 years. 2006’s Comfort of Strangers was an overlooked, subtle gem of a record and 2012’s Sugaring Season was as intriguing, deep and richly layered as her previous work.

British Road Movies is a strong, confident debut from the former Long Blondes frontwoman. And why wouldn’t it be? Kate Jackson has always had flair and talent to match, and this new collection of 10 songs was co-written and produced by Bernard Butler.

The Damned: Don’t You Wish We Were Dead? is a thorough, even-handed look back at their history, cultural significance and the colorful, clashing personalities within the seminal punk band.

How to pay tribute to the group with perhaps the most obsessive, meticulous, and passionate fans in music history? Not to mention a group with a ludicrously expansive discography: Grateful Dead recorded 22 studio albums between 1967 and 1990, and put out more than 140 in total.

On paper, Maggie’s Plan reads like indie dramedy filmmaking 101.

“Good luck and do your best!”—the parting wishes of a Hiroshima taxi driver to producer Gold Panda (aka Derwin Schlecker) on a recent trip to Japan. Little did that driver know that his simple politeness would be the catalyst for a new album for the English electronic artist. The title was the genesis of the record, with what followed becoming Gold Panda’s most optimistic album yet.

Peter Arno was a legendary cartoonist, most famous for his unforgettable work with The New Yorker in the 1930s and ‘40s. Peter Arno: The Mad, Mad World of The New Yorker‘s Greatest Cartoonist is the first biography of Arno and his work.