It Feels So Good When I Stop is both a book and a record by Joe Pernice, but you don't have to dig one to get the other. They're both terrific.

Amanda Blank's latest, I Love You, pretty well summarizes how we feel about HER. How about that! And only some of us were drinking.

Bitte Orca, the latest from DaveLongstreth's Dirty Projectors project, is a remarkable effort -- in no small part for its dense arrangements, or its sparse arrangements, depending on your point of view. WNPR's Anthony Fantano joins us for a bacchanal of musical geekery.

The latest offering from the Black Eyed Peas has us on the same derisive and page. What a piece of junk.

Michael Jackson is dead -- what has he left behind? Your SoundCheck pals have a rather animated discussion.

Richard Swift's latest record is called The Atlantic Ocean. That's about what separates our opinions of it.

Sonic Youth has returned to an independent label for its latest record, The Eternal. But is it a return to the band's roots?

Green Day's latest, 21st Century Breakdown, begs the question: Is Green Day still punk?

Zach Condon is a man of many musical methods. His latest project(s) is (are) a double-EP comprising Beirut's March of the Zapotec and Realpeople's Holland. If you think that's confusing, wait until you hear the music.

There has been a lot of buzz surrounding The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart. Their self-titled album might inspire games of "spot the influence," but we agree that the buzz is well-earned.