Steve Reich's latest album, Daniel Variations, receives four stars from The Guardian, whose Andrew Clements writes of the title piece: "From the very first uneasy chord it is very obviously a searching, serious piece and, I think, one of Reich's major statements." The album is now available in the Nonesuch Store with the exclusive bonus download, Dance Patterns.

Attack & Release, says KCRA-Sacramento, marks "a new musical paradigm for The Black Keys." The band is "now reborn and under a sign that bodes them well." And by year's end, it "shouldn't be a surprise to see the record wind up on many critics best-of lists." Metro Toronto gives the album four stars, calling the Black Keys / Danger Mouse pairing "a synergy that is so good." The Tampa Tribune exclaims that the band has unlocked a "grimy blues treasure trove" with the album.

The Brad Mehldau Trio is in St. Louis this week for a four-night residency at Jazz at the Bistro starting tonight. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Brad's latest album, the two-cd Live recording from the trio, is "clearly among his best." The Post-Dispatch calls the new collection "a beautifully realized album, by turns lyrical and rambunctious ... As a jazz artist, Mehldau has few peers."

The Black Keys "get bigger and even better" with Attack & Release, says the Boston Globe. The duo's collaboration with producer Danger Mouse brings "fresh, intriguing, and often inspiring" results. The Christian Science Monitor gives the album an A-, saying: "It may be the blues, and it may be strange, but that doesn't mean it can't feel good."

Steve Reich's latest Nonesuch release, Daniel Variations, will be in stores tomorrow, and the Metro (UK) gives the album five stars, calling it "remarkable." MusicOMH gives the album four stars, calling the title piece "the most vital of Reich's recent works," suggesting it marks "a new stylistic phase" for the composer.

"Ry Cooder is probably my guitar hero," Billy Bragg says in a Sunday New York Times Playlist. "The economy of his playing is something to be admired at a time when guitar players tend to think the more notes you play the better you are. My Name Is Buddy is up my street because it's capital-P Political ... There's a lot of love in the songs; they fit well in the tradition. Woody Guthrie's spirit runs through this record very strongly. Cooder plays stuff that we now refer to as Americana, but nobody called it that then. His excursions have been great, but for him to come back to where he began is pretty cool."

Youssou N'Dour was in London this week to perform with his Super Etoile band at Indig02, and The Independent gives the show four stars. The paper sees Youssou's latest Nonesuch release, Rokku Mi Rokka (Give and Take), as "the weave of percussion, bass lines and quicksilver guitars with N'Dour's extraordinary voice that stands out. His singing is a rhythmic device as much as an emotional force."

"Attack & Release may be the postage stamp that finally sends the music of The Black Keys around the world," exclaims the San Francisco Chronicle. Producer Danger Mouse "gives these guys a brilliant sheen, sort of like a pocket-size Zeppelin, and lets the band's brilliance shine through. This is one for year-end Top 10 lists already."