SURFER BLOOD Pythons [Warner Bros.] There’s something delightfully ’90s about this Florida quartet’s sophomore album and major label debut, and with producer Gil Norton (Pixies, Counting Crows, Throwing Muses) at the helm, it’s no huge surprise. Pythons is full of punchy guitar hooks and smooth, harmonious vocals, and while it’s poppy, there are some fetching bursts of anger. On opener “Demon Dance,” frontman John Paul Pitts sings about... 

GOO GOO DOLLS Magnetic [Warner Bros.] Last time out, on 2010’s Something for the Rest of Us, the Goo Goo Dolls went deep, singing about paralyzed war veterans, the plight of the 99 percent and other bummer subjects far removed from the misunderstood soul who pined for true love in “Iris.” For their 10th album, Magnetic, frontman John Rzeznik returns to familiar territory, penning inspirational tunes with titles like “Bulletproof Angel.”... 

THE FLAMING LIPS The Terror [Warner Bros.] No matter how much melancholy courses through their catalog, the Flaming Lips will always be known as a celebratory band. That’s more a product of their live shows—confetti-strewn freak-outs that feature frontman Wayne Coyne rolling over fans in a giant plastic ball—than it is their albums, though career highlights The Soft Bulletin (1999) and Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (2002) offset sadness with... 

GREEN DAY ¡Tré!  [Warner Bros.]  After diving into political and social commentary with concept albums in 2004 and 2009, Green Day lightened the mood in 2012 with a trilogy of less weighty records, released a few months apart. ¡Tré! wraps the triptych in characteristic fashion: There are no grand philosophical statements or particular points of view, just punchy pop songs that echo elements of the band’s career to now. “Missing You,” “Amanda”... 

MUSE The 2nd Law [Warner Bros.] Muse singer Matthew Bellamy has said his group’s new album would sound like the work of three different bands if it weren’t for his voice. That may be an understatement. Yes, Muse’s latest is a set of wildly divergent songs that coalesce around Bellamy’s voice—but the trio’s sheer force of will and considerable musical chops don’t hurt either. With a massive guitar riff and imposing strings, opener “Supremacy”... 

JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD Hypnotic Nights [Warner Bros.] After 10 years of thrashing around with garage-rock aesthetics, real-life band of brothers JEFF the Brotherhood have begun to explore new sonic territory. Hypnotic Nights, their seventh album and major-label debut, shows a great sense of adventure. Jake and Jamin Orrall give each song a unique touch, using rolling pianos, synthesizers—some psychedelic, others futuristic—and the odd guitar twang... 

JIMMY FALLON Blow Your Pants Off  [Warner Bros.] When he released his first album, 2002’s The Bathroom Wall, Jimmy Fallon was a  Saturday Night Live cast member best known for co-hosting the Weekend Update segment and occasionally pulling out his acoustic guitar to parody popular songs. After leaving SNL, Fallon took over from Conan O’Brien as the host of Late Night and promptly made the show his own—in part thanks to his winning musical... 

ERIC HUTCHINSON Moving Up Living Down [Warner Bros.] On his major-label debut, Eric Hutchinson’s upbeat, effusive melodies are underscored with reggae-ish rhythms, finding a niche that falls somewhere between Billy Joel, Bob Marley and Stevie Wonder. The Washington, D.C., native has taken a winding path to nationwide prominence, having been briefly signed to Madonna’s Maverick imprint before self-releasing 2008’s Sounds Like This. The album... 

R.E.M. Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011 [Warner Bros.] With R.E.M.’s demise last fall the timing is perfect for this double-disc, chronologically arranged retrospective that makes a valiant, if lopsided, attempt to put the group’s three-decade run into perspective. Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage is the first R.E.M. compendium that surveys the full breadth of that career, from the mumbly, jangly early innovations... 

BLAKE SHELTON Red River Blue [Warner Bros.] Blake Shelton, known outside the mainstream country world as resident cornball on NBC’s The Voice, swarmed to the top of the charts recently with the hillbilly valentine “Honey Bee.” On Red River Blue, perhaps the most pop-sounding collection in his catalog, he works best when exposing the different shades of domestic partnerships. The harmonies of Nashville’s leading women (“I’m Sorry” with... 

THE DEAD WEATHER Sea of Cowards [Third Man/Warner Bros.] The Dead Weather was never going to be a song band. The supergroup’s 2009 debut Horehound seemed mostly an opportunity for White Stripes singer and guitarist Jack White to climb behind the drums and lay down some of the darkest, most depraved blues grooves imaginable with the help of three like-minded friends. Sea of Cowards, the quartet’s sophomore disc, is even less rooted in traditional...