25 January 2026
Here's how it works: The Recent Releases chart brings together critical reaction to new albums from more than 50 sources worldwide. It's updated daily. Albums qualify with 5 reviews, and drop out after 6 weeks into the longer timespan charts.
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Fourth solo album from the Houston rapper featuring guest appearances from Bon Iver, Sampha, Drake, Playboi Carti, Beyoncé, 21 Savage, the Weeknd, Yung Lean, Young Thug, James Blake, Kid Cudi, Bad Bunny, Future and SZA
6.2
UTOPIA sees Scott stay true to his style, his preferences, and his principles, going against the grain of the tendencies in the viral-hungry world that is 2023 ra Read Review
Lead single ‘K-POP’ remains a titanic moment, but its immediacy is perhaps a misnomer on a record dominated by misdirection, about-turns, and sudden revelations Read Review
The album operates less as a cohesive body of work and more as a series of show-stopping set pieces Read Review
The Houston rapper's first album since 2018 teases a brave new sonic world, but has little to say about what might happen if we get there Read Review
In an attempt to give the world a true blockbuster rap album, the Houston rapper delivers a shiny, empty spectacle loaded with pop superstars who rarely make an impact Read Review
The reality is that while Scott is a masterful curator, he’s just an OK rapper. Those two realities are discordant for too many moments on Utopia Read Review
Returning with a long-awaited fourth album in the wake of the Astroworld disaster, Scott’s rhyming isn’t strong enough to distinguish him from his A-list guests Read Review
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Megadeth Megadeth
If anything, it's less of a "so long" and more of a "so, what's next?" as even more opportunity to experiment presents itself under a new banner. Megadeth makes it clear, it'll be worth continuing to paying attention Sputnik Music (staff)
Lucinda Williams World's Gone Wrong
World's Gone Wrong is an album of its moment that addresses issues that have been with us for centuries, and like a good blues song, they never stop being timely – and worth singing loud and clear, which is just what Williams does here All Music
On Megadeth’s farewell album, Dave Mustaine signs off with a final act of bloody-mindedness The Irish Times
For a final album from supposed titans of metal, Megadeth operates with surprisingly little ambition: It clocks in, then clocks out Slant Magazine
Conspiracy theories and combustible fingers on thrash metallers’ curtain call The Guardian
Megadeth (the album) is the perfect encapsulation of how Megadeth (the band) have lived: bold, frequently brilliant but occasionally flawed Kerrang!
Whether a mature gesture of goodwill towards Mustaine's longtime rivals or just a savvy marketing move, many of us will no doubt be skipping straight to this, battle vests well-stocked with tissues Exclaim
Dave Mustaine and co. remind us of their legacy, yet it’s the rarely seen moments of tenderness that truly stand out NME
After four decades in the business, the beginning of the end is (nearly) nigh for the thrash pioneers musicOMH
While burning with barely suppressed anger, her 16th album shows that, even in the darkest of times, there’s hope to be found musicOMH
World's Gone Wrong, while plenty angry, turns out to be less a protest album and more a mix of reportage and a call for resilience, all written in a style that allows it to be a timeless piece of resistance, born from its moment but not beholden to it Spectrum Culture
A$AP Rocky Don't Be Dumb
It's hardly any wonder, then, that Don't Be Dumb crams eight years' worth of ups and downs and sonic whims into roughly an hour of moody maximalism Exclaim
World’s Gone Wrong extends Williams’ fertile run, infused with the aesthetic adventurousness and undiluted honesty that have characterized her work for over four decades Beats Per Minute
Westside Cowboy So Much Country ‘Till We Get There
This EP shows promise, but there seems to be something missing Spill Magazine
So Much Country ‘Till We Get There is barely 15 minutes long; it is scarcely believable how much promise they’ve packed into it. Believe the hype The Skinny
Since we've been around, that is. So, the highest-rated albums from the past twelve years or so. Rankings are calculated to two decimal places.
Kendrick Lamar To Pimp A Butterfly
Fiona Apple Fetch The Bolt Cutters
Rosalía Lux
Kendrick Lamar Damn.
D'Angelo And The Vanguard Black Messiah
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Ghosteen
Spiritbox Tsunami Sea
Self Esteem Prioritise Pleasure
Hayley Williams Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party
Bob Dylan Rough and Rowdy Ways