Cloud Nothings Here and Nowhere Else
(Carpark/Mom + Pop )
Following the near-universal acclaim of Cloud Nothings' 2012 release, Attack on Memory, their third LP, Here and Nowhere Else, doesn't disappoint, blasting out of the gate with a tighter, more nuanced take on the '90s post-hardcore they made their name on. The razor-sharp twists and turns of "Psychic Trauma" and the hooky Pavement-riffing of "I'm Not Part of Me" prove that frontman Dylan Baldi is only getting better with age.
Chuck InglishConvertibles
(Federal Prism/Sounds Like Fun)
For his debut solo album, Convertibles, Cool Kids cofounder and producer-for-hire Chuck Inglish has concocted a silky blend of 808 beats and neo-disco splashes. It's a deft balancing act that produces slick melodies integrated into bona fide rap burners, with Inglish's crew of frequent collaborators like Mac Miller, Chance the Rapper and Ab-Soul all bringing their rhyming A game. Without a doubt, Convertibles is destined to be 2014's go-to house party banger.
Pink Mountaintops Get Back
(Jagjaguwar )
The latest from the surprisingly resilient side project of Black Mountain frontman Stephen McBean, Get Back is yet another show-case of Pink Mountaintops' howling combination of psychedelia, garage and krautrock. And while it isn't particularly innovative in its genre-mashing weirdness, Get Back is a damn fine rock record. Best in show goes to the speed-freak chug of "Ambulance City," which has Pink Mountaintops' rhythm section and guitars bracing against McBean's unpredictable yawp.