In this week's slate of Rolling Stone reviews, David Fricke hails the Strokes' fourth album Angles as their best since their era-defining debut This Is It. Fricke also recommends the new 11-disc Aretha Franklin retrospective Take A Look: Complete on Columbia, which he says showcases the full range of her vocal talent, and Green Day's live set Awesome As Fuck, which he calls a "contagious account of the power-fun streak that still runs through the band." Also, Jody Rosen says that Chris Brown's F.A.M.E. finds the singer bouncing back from a creative rut and bad publicity with a solid "pop 'n' b album with something for everyone."

On the singles front, David Fricke says that the new Cars comeback single "Sad Song" is so good that it seems like they never went away, and Will Hermes adores the hard psychedelic sound of "Glass Tambourine," the first single from the indie rock supergroup Wild Flag.

ALBUMS:

The Strokes - Angles (stream one song)

Green Day - Awesome As Fuck (stream one song)

Raekwon - Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang (stream one song)

Britney Spears - Femme Fatale (stream two songs)

Chris Brown - F.A.M.E. (stream one song)

Richard Ashcroft - United Nations of Sound (stream one song)

Panic at the Disco - Vices and Virtues (stream one song)

Aretha Franklin - Take a Look: Complete On Columbia (stream one song)

Various Artists  -  Alligator Records: 40th Anniversary Collection (stream one song)

SINGLES:

The Cars "Sad Song" (stream)

Wild Flag "Glass Tambourine" (stream)

Christina Perri "Arms" (stream)

LAST WEEK: Britney Gets Avant-Garde; Katy Perry, Kanye are Underwhelming

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