Квартет Boney M. получил феноменальную популярность во всём мире, кроме США, где успехи коллектива были заметно скромнее. За свою 10-летнюю карьеру коллектив получил множество наград музыкальной индустрии (в том числе британскую Carl Alan Award), сотни золотых и платиновых дисков, был занесён в Книгу рекордов Гиннеса за рекордные продажи в разных странах мира.

Although one does sometimes wonder whether there is not something ever-so-slightly self-defeating about CD-single box sets (who wants to get up to change the disc every five minutes?), as artifacts of the digital age, they have few peers. From ABBA to Black Sabbath, these little cases of perfectly reproduced period 45s make a magnificent conversation piece, and Deep Purple's contribution to the canon is one of the best of them all. Eleven discs round up each of the group's singles as issued in the U.K. and Europe between 1968 ("Hush") and 1976 ("You Keep On Moving") and, while there is nothing here that cannot be picked up on a full-length CD, still it is interesting to trace the band's overall development at 45 rpm. Following "Hush" with "Kentucky Woman" and "Emmaretta," after all, was simply the action of a band that had no direction, and not much clue as to what they'd do with one if they found it. "Hallelujah," the first recording to feature new members Ian Gillan and Roger Glover, says little for what Deep Purple would go on to create. But the moment the laser hits "Black Night," you know that this is a group absolutely in control of its destiny, rushing on through "Strange Kind of Woman," "Fireball," "Never Before" and "Woman from Tokyo" without missing a beat. Thereafter, two further singles -- "Might Just Take Your Life" and "You Keep On Moving" -- seem to have been issued more for the sake of having a new 45 out than for any hopes the band entertained of scoring an actual hit. But the former's instrumental B-side "Coronarias Redig" is a joy, while "Moving" itself is one of the group's all-time greatest numbers. With several singles incorporating non-album B-sides, and the picture sleeves featuring some genuinely nostalgic artistic notions, the box set is a joy to both play and behold. And, though you probably won't listen to it all that often, it's a wonderful thing to own, as well. ~ Dave Thompson

X-Drive is another star-studded, rock-oriented project worth taking a look at. Founded by Oregon-based guitarist and songwriter Jeremy Brunner, it’s comprised of Midline/Cure For The Fall drummer Fred Fischer and bassist James Lomenzo, well-known among fans of White Lion and Megadeth. The one to complete the picture is a longtime Montrose singer and part of Burning Rain project, Keith St. John, who handles the vocals. And while X-Drive is not necessarily an exact sum of all its parts music-wise – that is, some Montrose-meets-White-Lion-meets-Megadeth-meets-Midline kind of hybrid – their largely anticipated Get Your Rock On will get the audience’s attention partially due to the rich resume of the majority of musicians involved.

Maroon 5, которые раньше делали акцент на роковую составляющую своей музыки, теперь выпустили самый попсовый альбом под названием “Overexposed”. Название очевидно. Бенд долго сдерживал мощь своей «попсовости». Альбом получился очень интересным, а качественную музыку слушать было всегда приятно.

Jason Gray has emerged as a songwriter of extraordinary depth, with a noteworthy ability to convey deep theological truths in engaging three-and-a-half minute songs. The Minnesota native is steadily drawing legions of fans who recognize his ability to connect with listeners on an emotional level, offering not escape or distraction, but healing and hope. His 2012 release, A WAY TO SEE IN THE DARK, was named Album of the Year by critics and garnered three top-five radio singles, including 'Nothing is Wasted', which hit #1 for nine weeks.

Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 rounds up the handful of singles that weren't included on Elton John's first Greatest Hits collection ("Levon," "Tiny Dancer") and adds the highlights from Caribou, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, and Rock of the Westies ("The Bitch Is Back," "Someone Saved My Life Tonight," "Island Girl," "Grow Some Funk of Your Own," "I Feel Like a Bullet [In the Gun of Robert Ford]"), plus two non-LP hit singles ("Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," "Philadelphia Freedom") and John's version of "Pinball Wizard," taken from the soundtrack to Tommy. In short, it's an excellent continuation of the first collection, and taken together, they function as an ideal singles retrospective of the most successful singles artist of the early '70s.

"Thirty years ago, people said that we were cynical, that we had a bad attitude," says Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh. "But now, when you ask people if de-evolution is real, they understand that there was something to what we were saying. It’s not the kind of thing you want to see proven right, but it does make it easier to talk about."

Десятый студийный альбом Шакиры «Shakira» воспринимается в том ключе, что занятие музыкой для певицы стало носить, прежде всего, коммерческий интерес, чем желание серьезно творить в жанре латинской поп-музыки. Альбом не то чтобы плох совсем, напротив, в нем есть четыре песни, а совсем честно три, которые весьма крепко спродюсированы и представляют собой качественные и цельные композиции.