Brand New

Eight years of accumulating rumors about this pop-punk stalwart’s fifth LP have granted the album a mythological status. Somehow, Science Fiction, released earlier this summer, manages to live up to the hype, fully realizing the band’s most effective  techniques. Songs like “Lit Me Up” and “Batter Up” seethe with icy, acerbic quiet, while “Waste” builds on the slithering, smoky rage found in hits like “Jesus Christ.” Don’t miss your chance to hear it in concert, as the record is rumored to be the band’s last. If so, thank God it’s a stellar one—a comprehensive, mature capstone to an immense career.