New Rock & Roll & column at Barnes & Noble Review:

• Illygirl Steppin Up: M.I.A.: Maya

New Consumer Guide for July 2010. Featured albums:

• Bako Dagnon: Sidiba (Discograph) [B+]
• The Dead Weather: Sea of Cowards (Third Man/Warner Bros.) [B+]
• Bad Reputation: Pierre de Gaillande Sings Georges Brassens (Barbès) [A-]
• Étoile de Dakar: Once Upon a Time in Senegal: The Birth of Mbalax (Sterns Africa) [A]
• Macy Gray: The Sellout (Concord) [A-]
• LCD Soundsystem: This Is Happening (DFA/Virgin) [A-]
• The National: High Violet (4AD) [A-]
• The Pernice Brothers: Goodbye, Killer (Ashmont) [A-]
• Tokyo Police Club: Champ (Mom + Pop) [A-]
• Rokia Traoré: Tchamantche (Nonesuch) [A-]
• Them Crooked Vultures: Them Crooked Vultures (DGC/Interscope) [B-]

Honorable Mentions: Laurie Anderson, African Pearls: Sénégal -- Echo Musical, John Prine, The Soft Pack, Salif Keita, Uffie; Eccentric Breaks & Beats, A.C. Newman, Erykah Badu, Blk Jks, Sweet Talks, Mates of State; Mimicking Birds, Deer Tick, Youssou N'Dour, Jason Collett, Renée Fleming, Soft Machine, Devin the Dude, The White Stripes, The Black Keys, Raise Hope for Congo, The New Pornographers, Preservation.

Choice Cuts: Michael Jackson, Those Darlins, Josh Ritter, The Herbaliser, Ozomatli, Bettye LaVette, Screaming Females.

More Duds: Animal Collective, Toni Braxton, Jackson Browne/David Lindley/El Vivo Con Tino, Karen Elson, Alec Ounsworth, Tribute to a Reggae Legend.

New Rock & Roll & column at Barnes & Noble Review:

• Who Knows It Feels It: Chris Salewicz: Bob Marley: The Untold Story

New Consumer Guide for June 2010. Featured albums:

• African Pearls: Congo: Pont Sur le Congo (Syllart) [A]
• Elizabeth Cook: Welder (31 Tigers) [A]
• Hole: Nobody's Daughter (Mercury) [A-]
• Nas & Damian "JR. Gong" Marley: Distant Relatives (Def Jam) [A-]
• Ouaga Affair: Hard Won Sound of the Upper Volta 1974-78 (Savannahphone) [B+]
• Tin Huey: Before Obscurity: The Bushflow Tapes (Smog Veil) [B+]
• Titus Andronicus: The Monitor (XL) [A-]
• Julian Marley: Awake (Universal Republic) [B]

Honorable Mentions: The Hold Steady, Jimi Tenor/Tony Allen, Kate Nash, Fishtank Ensemble, Issa Juma and Super Wanyika Stars, The Apples in Stereo, Egypt Noir: Nubian Soul Treasures, Ryan Leslie; The Fall, Robin Thicke, Lagos Disco Inferno, Tony Allen, This Moment in Black History, African Pearls: Côte d'Ivoire: West African Crossroads, Timbila, Sierre Leone's Refugee All Stars, Mean Jeans; Eric Bibb, Hendy Odem, Ton3x, Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie, Ryan Leslie, Strange Boys, Etran Finatawa.

Choice Cuts: Fefe Dobson, Court Yard Hounds, Mayer Hawthorne, NOFX.

More Duds: Cobie Caillat, The Dillinger Escape Plan, The Gallows, Lady Antebellum, Shelby Lynne, Ky-Mani Marley, Pissed Jeans, Trey Songz, Carrie Underwood.

New Rock & Roll & column at Barnes & Noble Review:

• Pops as Pop: Louis Armstrong

New Consumer Guide for May 2010. Featured albums:

• Balkan Beat Box: Blue Eyed Black Boy (Nat Geo Music) [A-]
• Beatles Beginnings (Rhythmand Blues) [A-]
• Johnny Cash: American VI: Ain't No Grave (American) [A]
• Cornershop: Judy Sucks a Lemon for Breakfast (Ample Play) [A-]
• Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip: The Logic of Chance (Sunday Best) [A-]
• Merle Haggard: I Am What I Am (Vanguard) [B+]
• MC Esoteric: Saving Seamus Ryan (Fly Casual) [A-]
• Quasi: American Gong (Kill Rock Stars) [A-]
• Surfer Blood: Astro Coast (Kanine) [A-]
• MGMT: Congratulations (Columbia) [C+]

Honorable Mentions: Gogol Bordello, Hot Chip, Drive-By Truckers, Texas Tornados, Jaguar Love, Carolina Chocolate Drops, The Holmes Brothers, Danny Barnes; Bela Fleck, Broken Bells, Lyle Lovett, Drakkar Sauna, James Hand, Willie Nelson; Peter Karp & Sue Foley, Easton Corbin, St. Vincent, The Reverend Horton Heat, 7L & Esoteric, Beach House.

Choice Cuts: Gorillaz, Flight of the Conchords, Bright Eyes/Neva Dinova, She & Him.

More Duds: Bobby Bare Jr., Built to Spill, Jakob Dylan, The Low Anthem, Meth Ghost and Rae, Miike Snow, Rain Machie, 7L & Esoteric, Blake Shelton.

New Consumer Guide for April 2010. Featured albums:

• Mose Allison: The Way of the World (Anti-) [B+]
• MC Paul Barman: Thought Balloon Mushroom Cloud (Househusband) [A-]
• The Bundles: The Bundles (K) [A-]
• Fever Ray: Fever Ray (Rabid/Mute) [A-]
• Ricardo Lemvo and Makina Loca: Isabela (Mopiato Music) [A-]
• Ricardo Lemvo and Makina Loca: Retrospectiva (Mopiato Music) [A-]
• Lil Wayne: No Ceilings (free download) [A-]
• Love Is All: Two Thousand and Ten Injuries (Polyvinyl) [A-]
• Kinito Méndez: Éxitos de Kinito Méndez (J & N) [A-]
• Freeway & Jake One: Stimulus Package (Rhymesayers Entertainment) [B]

Honorable Mentions: The Da Vincis, Project Ahimsa Presents Global Lingo, Los Campesinos!, Bettie Serveert, MC Paul Barman; Wetdog, Röyksopp, Donwill, Kid Cudi, Dr. Dooom, Roberto Rodriguez, Lil Wayne, Kleenex LiLiPUT; Gucci Mane, Felt, Gil Scott-Heron, Souls of Mischief, Abraham Inc., Snoop Dogg Presents the West Coast Blueprint, Cock Lorge Band, Ludacris.

Choice Cuts: Peter Gabriel, Masha Qrella, Young Money, Lil Wayne.

More Duds: Dap C & Lil Wayne, Dead Man's Bones, Dum Dum Girls, Fabolous, Freddie Gibbs, Hopsin, The Knife, Kool Keith, Snoop Dogg.

New Rock & Roll & column at Barnes & Noble Review:

• The Triumph of the Id: Lil Wayne

New Consumer Guide for March 2010. Featured albums:

• David Bazan: Curse Your Branches (Barsuk) [A-]
• Dessa: A Badly Broken Code (Doomtree) [A-]
• Everybody Was in the French Resistance . . . Now!: Fixing the Charts Vol. 1 (Cooking Vinyl) [A-]
• The Flaming Lips: Embryonic (Warner Bros.) [A-]
• Gabriel Johnson: Fra_ctured (Electrofone) [A-]
• Lady Gaga: The Fame Monster (Interscope) [A-]
• Boban i Marko Markovic: Devla: Blown Away to Dancefloor Heaven (Piranha) [A-]
• Youssou N'Dour: I Bring What I Love (Nonesuch) [A-]
• Spoon: Transference (Merge) [A-]
• Vampire Weekend: Contra (XL) [A]
• The Whitefield Brothers: Earthology (Now-Again) [A-]
• Alicia Keys: The Element of Freedom (J) [B]

Honorable Mentions: Jon Hassell, The Magnetic Fields, Whiskey in the Jar, Mary J. Blige, V.V. Brown, Fuck Buttons, Annie, BalkanBeats, Clem Snide, Hot Club de Norvege, Jon Hassell, DJ/Rupture & Matt Shadetek, Queen Ifrica, Sade, Nneka, Blk Jks, Four Tet, Fool's Gold

Choice Cuts: Burkina Electric, Sister Fa, Ke$ha, Discovery, Florence + the Machine

More Duds: Blk Jks, The Horrors, Leona Lewis, Matisyahu, Neon Indian

New Rock & Roll & column at Barnes & Noble Review:

• Smart and Smarter: Vampire Weekend: Contra

New Consumer Guide for February 2010. Featured albums:

• The Dirty Projectors: Bitte Orca (Domino) [B+]
• Fruit Bats: The Ruminant Band (Sub Pop) [A-]
• Group Bombino: Guitars From Agadez Vol. 2 (Sublime Frequencies) [A-]
• Paul Kelly: Greatest Hits: Songs From the South; Volumes 1 & 2 (Capitol) [B+]
• Jeffrey Lewis & the Junkyard: Em Are I (Rough Trade) [A-]
• The Mountain Goats: The Life of the World to Come (4AD) [A-]
• Rail Band: Rail Band 2: Mansa (Belle Epoque) [A-]
• Rail Band: Rail Band 3: Dioba (Belle Epoque) [B+]
• Peter Stampfel: Dook of the Beatniks (Piety Street Files & Archaic) [A-]
• The Decemberists: The Hazards of Love (Capitol) [C]

Honorable Mentions: Vieux Farka Touré, The Very Best, Jill Sobule, Group Doueh, Tinariwen, Willowz, Dr. Boogie Presents Heavy Jelly, Freedy Johnston, Tea Cozies, The Very Best [mixtape], The Red Krayola With Art & Language, Ghana Special, Chuck Prophet, Rosanne Cash, La Drivers Union Por Por Group, Thao With the Get Down Stay Down, Bibio

Choice Cuts: Menya, Bruce Robison, Julian Casablancas, Norah Jones, Kris Kristofferson

More Duds: Andrew Bird, The Boxer Rebellion, Dan Deacon, Deradoorian, Jolie Holland, Noah and the Whale, A Sunny Day in Glasgow

New Rock&Roll& column at Barnes & Noble Review, wrapping up 2009.

• Resuscitations and Business Plans: The Best Albums of 2009
• Robert Christgau's 2009 "Dean's List"

New Consumer Guide for January 2010. Featured albums:

• The Chemical Brothers: Brotherhood (Limited Edition) (Virgin) [A-]
• Death Cab for Cutie: The Open Door (Atlantic, EP) [A-]
• Ghostface Killah: Fish N Chips (Mick Boogie Entertainment) [B+]
• Ghostface Killah: Ghostdini Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City (Def Jam) [A-]
• God Help the Girl: God Help the Girl (Matador) [A-]
• Richard Hell: Destiny Street Repaired (Insound.com) [A-]
• A Place to Bury Strangers: Exploding Head (Mute) [A-]
• Shakira: She Wolf (Epic) [A-]
• Q-Tip: Kamaal the Abstract (Battery) [B-]

Honorable Mentions: Amerie, Mi Loco Tango, God Help the Girl, Ralph Carney's Serious Jass Project, Soulico; Regenerated Headpiece, Wyclef Jean, Khingz, Massive Attack, Themselves, M.O.P., John Mayer, Rihanna, Jamie T, Themselves, Clipse, A Place to Bury Strangers; Brother Ali, Rakim, Q-Tip, KRS-One & Buckshot, Grand Puba, Big Star, Third Eye Blind

Choice Cuts: John Fogerty, Wale, Ian Hunter, Ghostface Killah

More Duds: Mariah Carey, Chester French, 50 Cent, M.O.P., Me'Shell Ndegeocello, Subtle, Swollen Members, Rob Thomas

Robert Christgau's ballot for Rolling Stone's The Decade's Best Songs & Albums.

New Rock&Roll& column at Barnes & Noble Review, on Thelonious Monk, Not So Misterioso.

• Not So Misterioso

New Consumer Guide for December 2009. Featured albums:

• Mulatu Astatke: New York-Addis-London: The Story of Ethio Jazz 1965-1975 (Strut) [A-]
• Eva & the Heartmaker: Let's Keep This Up Forever (Sony) [B+]
• Girls: Album (True Panther/Fantasy Trashcan) [A-]
• Veda Hille: This Riot Life (Ape House) [A-]
• Nirvana: Live at Reading (DGC) [A]
• Jay Reatard: Watch Me Fall (Matador) [A-]
• The Rough Guide to Gypsy Revival (World Music Network) [B+]
• Tegan and Sara: Sainthood (Vapor/Sire) [A-]
• tUnE-yArDs: BiRd-BrAiNs (4AD) [A]
• The xx: The xx (XL/Young Turks) [A]
• Lynyrd Skynyrd: God & Guns (RoadRunner/Loud & Proud) [C+]

Honorable Mentions: Kottarashky, Gogol Bordello, Joe Nichols, NOFX, The Asteroids Galaxy Tour, BalkanBeats: A Night in Berlin, The Raveonettes, The Black Crowes, Scream Along With Billy, Talk Normal, Sam Baker, Tom Waits, Bob Dylan, The Ettes, A Hawk and a Hacksaw, Vivian Girls, Tommy T

Choice Cuts: Tim McGraw, Asylum Street Spankers, Musafir, Toby Keith, Kitka, Taylor Swift

More Duds: Ingrid Michaelson, Noisettes, Karen O and the Kids, Susana and the Magical Orchestra, Wavves, Wye Oak

New Rock&Roll& column at Barnes & Noble Review, on Brad Paisley, American Saturday Night.

• Paisley's Progress

New Consumer Guide for November 2009. Featured albums:

• The Avett Brothers: I and Love and You (American) [A-]
• Franco: Francophonic Vol. 2 (Sterns Africa) [A+]
• Nellie McKay: Normal as Blueberry Pie: A Tribute to Doris Day (Verve) [A]
• Modest Mouse: No One's First, and You're Next (Epic) [A-]
• Jemina Pearl: Break It Up (Universal Motown) [B+]
• Various artists: The Rough Guide to Tango Revival (World Music Network) [A-]
• Loudon Wainwright III: High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project (161) [A]
• White Denim: Fits (Downtown) [A-]
• Arctic Monkeys: Humbug (Domino) [B]

Honorable Mentions: Kid Sister, No Age, Telekinesis, Amira Sagati, Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band, Maria Muldaur & Her Garden of Joy, Bygones, Basement Jaxx, Richmond Fontaine, Think Global: Tango, The Backsliders, The Donnas, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Lightning Bolt, Blitzen Trapper, La Roux, The Rough Guide to Tango, The Pica Beats, Mission of Burma, Loudon Wainwright III, Monsters of Folk, The Avett Brothers, Future of the Left, Paramore, Phoenix

Choice Cuts: White Denim, The Slits, Anjulie, Lightning Bolt

More Duds: The Avett Brothers, Franz Ferdinand, Tango Around the World, Telepathe, Martha Wainwright, Wild Beasts

New Rock&Roll& column at Barnes & Noble Review, reviewing R. Crumb, The Book of Genesis Illustrated.

• A Classic Illustrated

NPR music review: Nellie McKay's Love Letter to Doris Day.