The Dears’ last album, 2008’s Missiles, came at a fractious time in the band’s history.

When broken down, there’s nothing terribly unique about the building blocks of James Blake’s eponymous debut. Soulful vocals—more Motown than anytown—are flattened with (shutter) vocoder, and stirred into minimalist beats. It’s an oddball gathering of elements that one imagines could have been developed any singer/songwriter desperate to elevate his work past the bar and into the limelight. However, the odd assemblage works thanks to Blake’s ability to recognize a hook, leaving him as a go-to guy for gestalt—even if the ghost of Jamie Lidell’s back catalogue hangs heavy over the proceedings.

Revolver’s debut full length, 2010’s Music for a While, was a harmony-filled homage to the greatness of such bands as The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and Simon & Garfunkel, and with two new originals and two covers, the Parallel Lives EP is a good primer for the uninitiated.

Akron/Family offer up another full-length on Dead Oceans and continue loosely with the trajectory (or restless non-trajectory) they initiated on 2009’s Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free.

Scott Kelly and Wino played a small show at New York’s Mercury Lounge to close out a short cross-country, co-headlining acoustic tour, showcasing each musician’s brand of dark folk music.

The Wii aims to extend their exclusive platformer streak they started with such 2010 games as Donkey Kong Country, Kirby’s Epic Yarn, and Super Mario Galaxy 2, with the inventive Lost in Shadow.

The King of Limbs opens with a snappy, off-kilter drumbeat, call-and-response electronics, and then Thom Yorke singing, “Open your mouth wide.” One minute into “Bloom” and the band’s first new album in four years, and the expectations could not be higher. And then… the beat continues, the electronics pulse on, and Yorke occasionally dips his toes in with a few lines here and there. “Bloom” never reaches the astounding heights Radiohead has become known for, but then again, neither does The King of Limbs.

Both an excoriation and celebration of her home country, Let England Shake is as straightforward a concept as PJ Harvey has ever addressed on record.

Friedberger, true to his work ethic, has launched a subscription series of solo vinyl albums that will ultimately form a box set.