Magic

The Boss returns, with the E Street Band in tow, for a surprisingly complex album that hides its disillusionment deep within its music, mingling it with a weary optimism that has not diminished with age.

It's tempting to call Bruce Springsteen's rock-oriented Magic a response to The Killers, The Hold Steady, The Arcade Fire, and every other band beholden to the Springsteen mythos. But honestly, Magic doesn't sound like the Springsteen those bands know. Yes, there are traces. The frat-rocker "Livin' In The Future" nods…

Check out our album review of Artist's Magic on Rolling Stone.com.

I’ll grant you that Magic is uneven, but I cannot admit that it is anything other than constantly captivating.

<p>(Columbia)</p>