Pitchfork

In standard and extended editions, Taylor Swift’s 11th studio album races to fill the gap between her intimate songwriting and her increasingly outsized persona. It’s unruly, unedited, and even a little tortured.

The London-based musician’s potent and intuitive second album dissolves the binaries inherent in ambient jazz and imagines a third sort of music that thrives at their midpoint.

Split between libido-maxxed hooks and hackneyed stabs at post-bender profundity, the Dare’s debut album is sweaty, horny, and trying really hard.

On a record originally conceived as an ode to joy, Nick Cave continues to grapple with the all-consuming nature of grief. Pushed to rapturous extremes, the album sounds as haunted as it is healing.

The Asheville singer-songwriter’s outstanding fourth album is loaded with zingers and losers. It’s witty and sincere, the mark of a songwriter finding his voice.

After a summer of hit singles, Sabrina Carpenter sets a high bar for big pop with a refreshingly light album that’s cheeky, clever, and effortlessly executed.

Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today we revisit the Pogues’ 1985 classic, a groundbreaking punk-rock fever-dream pub session led by Shane MacGowan’s unforgettable writing and performance.

Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today we revisit the Ween’s landmark 1994 album, a genius pop record made by two idiots—or vice versa.

Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today we revisit an essential 1979 example of self-described Great Black Music from a tight-knit collective that embraced traditional and experimental forms all at once.

Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today we revisit the pop star’s singular 2007 album, her oft-misunderstood comeback and a defining cultural artifact of the dark, trashy, celebrity-driven essence of the aughts.

Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today we revisit Daddy Yankee’s breakthrough album, the unforgettable year of “Gasolina,” and how the Puerto Rican rapper helped make reggaeton a global sensation.