Unfortunately, in the weeks so close to Christmas and New Years, the steady flow of new music takes a hit, but that doesn’t mean there are no exciting releases arriving the week of December 16. Peep the list of this week’s noteworthy albums below.

December 16

Burial - “Rival Dealer”

Rockie Fresh & Casey Veggies - “Fresh Veggies”

December 17

B.o.B - “Underground Luxury”

Mac Miller - “Live From Space” [Live Album]

Week’s Best: Burial - “River Dealer”
Burial defined his sound on his 2007 “Untrue,” a sound that became synonymous with his name. For years, electronic artists that fell into the same genre would be compared to Burial, pinning them for drawing from similar noisy static sounds and pitched-down voice samples. But on “River Dealer,” Burial introduces major stylistic tweaks that redefine his sound anew and likely set the stage for future ‘Burial imitators.’

Week’s Worst: Mac Miller - “Live From Space”
Let’s be honest. Live rap albums simply don’t cut it unless they offer something new. Without any fresh material, spectacular guest appearances, freestyles, or undeniable live-flow swag, it’s simply a compilation of old songs that suffer due to poor quality, and that’s essentially what you get with Miller’s “Live From Space.” Thanks for sharing, but stick to the studio albums.