The Staves' new Justin Vernon–produced album, If I Was, is out now on CD and digitally in the US on Nonesuch Records, with vinyl due April 21. The trio brings "angelic harmonies" to the "consistently daring" album, writes the New York Times' Jon Pareles. "[T]he songs are illuminated from within." "This entire record is essential listening," raves Stereogum. "The Staveley-Taylor sisters possess the kind of voices that make able-bodied writers lose control of their capacity to avoid terms like ethereal, angelic, and otherworldly." The album earns four stars from the Guardian, Sun, MusicOMH, and Daily Mirror, which calls it "ravishing and inspired ... with astonishing vocals ... an unfailingly tender touch, freshness and natural warmth."

Newly formed Congolese seven-piece band Mbongwana Star releases its debut full-length album, From Kinshasa, on May 19 via World Circuit, distributed in North America by Nonesuch Records; vinyl follows on July 31. The band features members of a new generation of Kinshasa musicians embodying the concept of “mbongwana,” or “change.” Along with Parisian producer Doctor L, the band has created a sound that embodies the “smashed-together” nature of the surroundings from which it was born—fusing traditional Congolese rhythms with European post-punk bass and busted electronics from recycled and reconstructed instruments miked and distorted in unexpected ways. Pre-orders include an instant download of the album track "Malukayi (feat. Konono No.1)."

Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell's new album, The Traveling Kind, will be released May 12 on Nonesuch Records. Rolling Stone has premiered the title track, which may be downloaded with pre-orders of the album at iTunes and in the Nonesuch Store, where CD and vinyl orders also include an exclusive, limited-edition autographed print. Produced by Joe Henry, The Traveling Kind follows the longtime friends' first duet album, 2013's Grammy Award-winning Old Yellow Moon, and comprises 11 duet tracks, including six new songs written by Harris and Crowell with co-writing by Mary Carr, Cory Chisel, Will Jennings, and Larry Klein. Harris and Crowell will play a series of intimate shows in support of the record this May, including shows in San Francisco, Napa, Chicago, NYC, and Nashville.

The Staves' Nonesuch debut album, If I Was, produced by Justin Vernon, is due out next week in the US. But you don't need to wait till then to hear it: the album is streaming in full all this week via Stereogum. "This entire record is essential listening," raves Stereogum. "The Staveley-Taylor sisters possess the kind of voices that make able-bodied writers lose control of their capacity to avoid terms like ethereal, angelic, and otherworldly. They are simply astonishing in tone, harmony, precision, their ability to weave in and around one another like birds dipping and flitting through the sky."

Buena Vista Social Club’s Lost and Found is out now on CD and digitally from World Circuit Records; the vinyl is due April 21. Coming almost two decades after the release of the original Grammy-winning, self-titled LP, the new album is a collection of previously unreleased tracks—some of which were recorded during the original album’s sessions in Havana and others from the years that followed. Lost and Found also features live recordings from the world tours of Buena Vista’s legendary veterans. NPR calls it "a gorgeous reminder of what made [Buena Vista] so famous to begin with." The Guardian calls it "exquisite."

Trio Da Kali is a group of musicians from the Mande culture of southern Mali who come from a long line of distinguished griots. Formed of voice, ngoni, and balafon, the Trio aims to bring a contemporary twist to ancient and neglected repertoires. Its debut EP is now available digitally from World Circuit, distributed in North America by Nonesuch Records.

Buena Vista Social Club's Lost and Found, a collection of previously unreleased tracks, is due out next week. But you don't need to wait till then to hear it: the album is streaming in full all this week as an NPR First Listen at npr.org. "It was nearly 20 years ago, back in 1997, that the Buena Vista Social Club became an improbable worldwide sensation: a group of mainly elderly (and some younger) Cuban musicians, performing traditional son music for an album produced by Ry Cooder," writes NPR's Anastasia Tsioulcas. "If it turns out that this is the year we do say a final goodbye to the Buena Vista collective, Lost and Found provides a gorgeous reminder of what made it so famous to begin with — and what we'll all be missing."

Singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Olivia Chaney makes her album debut with The Longest River, available April 28 on Nonesuch Records. On the album, Chaney balances her original compositions with a selection of covers she has newly arranged that illustrate the broad sweep of her taste, from jazz to Purcell to folk. "Her voice holds the purity, tension, dignity and sorrow of a heritage full of songs about lost love and cruel fate," says the New York Times. "Ms. Chaney is thoroughly grounded in the past, from medieval music to [Joni] Mitchell. But in her quiet way, she’s radical." The Longest River is available to pre-order with an instant download of the album tracks "Imperfections" and "The King's Horses."

Rhiannon Giddens' solo recording debut, Tomorrow Is My Turn, produced by T Bone Burnett, was released last month on CD and digitally and is now available on vinyl. The LP edition is pressed on 140-gram, audiophile vinyl and includes a CD of the complete album. The New York Times calls it "a showcase for Ms. Giddens’s glorious voice," and Rolling Stone dubs her "one of the most promising voices in American roots music." Rhiannon Giddens was the guest on NPR's World Cafe yesterday; her spring tour begins later this month at the Big Ears Festival.

Jonny Greenwood’s soundtrack to Paul Thomas Anderson’s new film, Inherent Vice, is out now available on two-LP, 140-gram vinyl. An adaptation of the Thomas Pynchon novel, Inherent Vice, is set in the tail end of the psychedelic ’60s. The soundtrack features nine compositions by Greenwood, an unreleased Radiohead tune performed by members of Supergrass, plus other recordings from the movie’s era. The New York Times calls it an "excellent playlist." Additional performers include The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Neil Young, Can, and The Marketts, among others.

Nonesuch releases HIVE1, the label debut from Tyondai Braxton, on May 12, 2015. Written and recorded throughout 2013 and 2014, the recording comprises eight pieces that were originally conceived for a performance work called HIVE that debuted at New York’s Guggenheim Museum in 2013. The work evolved into HIVE1, which is available to pre-order with an instant download of the album track Scout1. Braxton will perform HIVE each day of his three-day residency at the Knoxville Museum of Art as part of the Big Ears festival in March. 

Punch Brothers’ T Bone Burnett–produced new album, The Phosphorescent Blues, which was released late last month on CD and digitally, is now available on vinyl. The double LP, pressed on 140-gram audiophile vinyl, includes four additional tracks not available elsewhere. The band continues its North American tour in Asheville, North Carolina, tonight, followed by stops in the days ahead in Atlanta, Nashville, and Chicago, where the Chicago Reader calls the new album "stunning."