Wilco Live - Ashes of American Flags (DVD)

"A journey with perhaps the best band in America, Wilco, through the dilapidated downtowns of a nation at its weariest - recapturing the magic of their studio work for the past 15 years to crowds that are parched and thirsty for a drink of roots rock."

Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion

"An album that radiates with summer heat, expressing the haziness of water on the horizon, though its appearance is only a mirage - Animal Collective can scarcely recreate the genius manifested on this record in a live setting; still, its illusion will live on as a symbol of creativity."

Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

"While most pop artists are calculated enough to sell records, Phoenix is calculated enough to take us somewhere transcendent, especially on '1901', a track that's gleaming with guitars and a memorable hook."

Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest

"A follow up to the plaintive Yellow House, Veckatimest is an exercise in measured enthusiasm - a fire that sparks enough to beautifully light up the night sky, but never growing wild enough to burn onlookers."