Jimmy Haslip’s taste runs the gamut, from jazz to rock and even to long-ago pop stars. So getting him to narrow things down was quite a challenge.

Ben Craven has created a great big progressive-rock epic, smack dab in the midst of our very modern, rather silly ‘Masked Singer’ world.

Ross Hammond’s ‘Roll Forward’ is a mixture of jazz, folk, blues and jamming that sounds unique without even really trying to be.

‘Sunday Carvery’ finds Emperor Penguin bingeing on an assortment of musical condiments aimed to satisfy audiences with adventurous appetites.

Here is the streaming premiere of unrelenting “Legitimate Perseverance” from Secret People’s upcoming eponymous album.

Plaudits galore for the imaginative arrangements and serious, serious musical chops displayed on ‘Canadiana’ from the Canadian Brass.

It’s refreshing to hear this version of Aerosmith without the glitz and glam that they became known for later on.

Dave Douglas’ ambition to honor a classic work of art from six centuries ago strictly on his own terms is what makes ‘Secular Psalms’ a piece of fine art on its own.

Crunching with Weezer-like chords, Richard Turgeon’s “I Never Loved You” is magnified by compact melodies, stable beats and flurries of airy harmonies.

This self-titled LP from Gothenburg, Sweden-based Kyte was a solid debut by a very promising group. In fact, I called them the best new band of 2008.