The National Book Critics Circle Board of Directors has announced its finalists for 2018 awards. There are six categories, and Robert Christgau's Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism, 1967-2017 has been selected as one of the five finalists in Criticism. The NBCC Awards have been awarded annually since 1975.

New questions and answers were posted Tuesday, January 15: 920-217-0236.

New in Expert Witness:

• The Delines: The Imperial (Decor/El Cortez) A-
• Kacey Musgraves: Golden Hour (MCA Nashville) B+
• Marianne Faithful: Negative Capability (Panta Rei/BMG) ***
• Brandi Carlile: By the Way, I Forgive You (ATO) **

Robert Christgau lists his favorite albums of 2018 in this year's annual Dean's List.

New questions and answers will be posted Tuesday, January 15: Dyas.

New in (321) 900-7565:

• Mitski: Be the Cowboy (Dead Oceans) A-
• Soccer Mommy: Clean (Fat Possum) A-
• Adrianne Lenker: Abysskiss (Saddle Creek) *
• Nice as Fuck: Nice as Fuck (Loves Way) *

New questions and answers were posted Tuesday, January 1: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• Lupe Fiasco: Drogas Wave (1st & 15th) A-
• Meek Mill: Championships (Maybach Music Group) B+
• Lil Wayne: Tha Carter V (Young Money) ***
• Lupe Fiasco: Drogas Ligh (1st & 15th) **
• Vince Staples: FM! (Def Jam) *

New questions and answers were posted Tuesday, December 18: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• Cupcakke: Ephorize (Cupcakke) A-
• Leikeli47: Acrylic (Hardcover/RCA) A-
• Cupcakke: Queen Elizabitch (Cupcakke) B+
• Leikeli47: Wash and Set (Hardcover/RCA) B+
• Cupcakke: Eden (Cupcakke) ***

New questions and answers west will be posted on Tuesday, December 18: (910) 272-3814.

New in (801) 665-1009:

• The Goon Sax: We're Not Talking (Wichita Recordings) A-
• Mad Crush: Mad Crush (Upon This Rock) B+
• Flasher: Constant Image (Domino) ***
• Weakened Friends: Common Blah (Don Giovanni) **

New questions and answers west posted on Tuesday, December 4: Xgau Sez.

Events, interviews, and reviews of Robert Christgau's recent book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017:

• Is It Still Good to Ya?: Robert Christgau in Conversation with Eric Lott: Event, December 10, 2018, 6:30pm, William P. Kelly Skylight Room, The Graduate Center, CUNY, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016.
• Brad Wheeler: A rock critic's 10 steps for better ears.

Note: We are currently experiencing a problem with accented characters stored in the Consumer Guide database being presented as garbage.

New in Expert Witness:

• Sons of Kemet: Your Queen Is a Reptile (Impulse!) A-
• Doctor Nativo: Guatemaya (Stonetree) A-
• Celestial Blues (Ace) ***
• Sons of Kemet: Burn (Naim) **

New questions and answers on Tuesday, December 4: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• L7: Fast andFrightening (Easy Action) A-
• Joan Jett: Bad Reputation (Blackheart) A-
• The Beths: Future Me Hates Me (Carpark) ***
• Lala Lala: The Lamb (Hardly Art) *

New questions and answers last Tuesday: Xgau Sez.

Also note that the website now has a RSS 2.0 feed. It is (for now anyway) updated manually as new articles and/or significant revisions are made to the website.

New in Expert Witness:

• Homeboy Sandman & Edan: Humble Pi (Stones Throw) A-
• Open Mike Eagle: What Happens When I Try to Relax (Auto Reverse) A-
• Atmosphere: Mi Vida Local (Rhymesayers) **
• 2Mex: Lospital (Water the Plants) *
• Red Pill: Instinctive Drowning (Mello Music) *

New questions and answers will be published on Tuesday, November 20: (267) 821-1407.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was published October 26 by Duke University Press.

Website was updated on Thursday, including all Expert Witness reviews from January to last week.

New in Expert Witness:

• Pistol Annies: Interstate Gospel (RCA) A
• Becky Warren: Undesirable (self-released) A-
• Mandy Barnett: Strange Conversation (Dame Productions/Thirty Tigers) A-
• Robbie Fulks/Linda Gail Lewis: Wild! Wild! Wild! (Bloodshot) ***

New questions and answers were published on November 6: (937) 322-8920.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was published October 26 by Duke University Press. Some recent reviews and discussion:

• Monsters of Rock Criticism: Greil Marcus Interviews Robert Christgau (Rolling Stone, Nov. 8, 2018).

Christgau also wrote a new essay about the new book:

• Why It's Still Good to Me: Robert Christgau Reflects on a Half Century of Rock Criticism (Noisey, Nov. 6, 2018)

New in (620) 639-3981:

• Rich Krueger: NOWThen (Rockink) A-
• Paul Simon: In the Blue Light (Legacy) A-
• The Chandler Travis Three-O: Backward Crooked From the Sunset (Iddy Biddy) *
• Rich Krueger: Overpass (CDBaby) *

New questions and answers will be posted on Tuesday, November 6, before the polls open: (902) 527-3906.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was released last week (October 26) by Duke University Press.

New in Expert Witness:

• Maria Muldaur: Dont You Feel My Leg: The Naughty Bawdy Blues of Blue Lu Barker (Last) A
• Blue Lu Barker: Remastered Collection (J. Joes J. Edizioni Musicali) A-
• George Jones & the Jones Boys: Live in Texas 1965 (Ace) ***
• Duke Robillard and His Dames of Rhythm (M.C.) **
• Willie Nelson: My Way (Legacy) *

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, October 23: (513) 226-5415.

Christgau's new book, Is It Still Good to Ya? Fifty Years of Rock Criticism 1967-2017, was released today (October 26) by Duke University Press.

New in solferino:

• Riton & Kah-Lo: Foreign Ororo (Last Gang) A-
• I'm Not Here to Hunt Rabits (Piranha) A-
• Next Stop Soweto Vol. 4 (Strut) ***
• Seun Kuti & Egypt 80: Black Times (Strut) *

New in Expert Witness:

• Hamell on Trial: The Night Guy at the Apocalypse: Profiles of a Rushing Midnight (Saustext) A
• Lyrics Born: Quite a Life (Mobile Home) A-
• Mudhoney: Digital Garbage (Sub Pop) ***
• Will Hoge: My American Dream (Thirty Tigers/EDLO) **

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, October 9: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• Noname: Room 25 (self-relesed) A
• The Internet: Hive mind (Columbia) A-
• Blood Orange: Negro Swan (Domino) ***
• Medhane: Ba Suba, Ak Jamm (Grand Closing) *

New in 805-208-1165:

• Eminem: The Marshall Mathers LP 2 (Aftermath/Shady/Interscope) A
• Eminem: Kamikaze (Aftermath/Shady/Interscope/Goliath) B+
• Jean Grae & Quelle Chris: Everything's Fine (Mello Music) ***
• E-40: The Gift of Gab (HTS) **
• Rae Sremmurd: SR3MM (Eardruma/Interscope) *

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, September 18: Xgau Sez.

New in Expert Witness:

• The Mekons 77: It Is Twice Blessed (Slow Things) A-
• Tropical Fuck Storm: A Laughing Death in Meatspace (Tropical Fuck Storm/Mistletone) A-
• Ceramic Dog: YRU Still Here? (Northern Spy) ***
• Ike Reilly: Crooked Love (Rock Ridge) **
• Marc Ribot: Songs of Resistance 1942-2018 (Anti-) *

Also new:

• Remembering Rai & Rock Troublemaker Rachid Taha, in Rolling Stone.
• The Village Voice (1955-2018), in Artforum: memoirs by Gary Indiana, Molly Haskell, J. Hoberman, Vivian Gornick, Melissa Anderson, Robert Christgau, Michael Miller, and Greg Tate, introduced by Jennifer Krasinski

Also old, but new here:

• A Short and Happy History of Rock, from Stereo Review (March, 1969)
• Katinka, from Rolling Stone (September 19, 2017)

New in 780-252-1577:

• John Kruth & La Società del Musici: Forever Ago (Ars Spoleteum) A-
• Clay Harper: Bleak Beauty (self-released) B+
• Sam Baker: Land of Doubtr (self-released) **
• Chris Butler & Ralph Carney: Songs for Unsung Holidays (Smog Veil) **

New questions and answers were posted on Tuesday, September 4: (709) 427-9790.

New in 415-849-3596:

• Hinds: I Don't Run (Mom + Pop) A-
• Bali Baby: Baylor Swift (Twin) A-
• Kali Uchis: Isolation (Virgin EMI) ***
• Primo!: Amici (Polyester) *