John Legend and The Roots have followed the most important rules when covering material from other artists: you need to keep that signature sound that made the original important, while also adding that something special to make it your own.

It is not deserving of a Hurley-level bashing, and it’s too aware to be Pinkerton. It’s an album they could have made 10 years ago, but it’s also one that feels moderately current.

El Pintor is a well-produced album that proves Interpol are still a quality band, even without the extreme hype to back them.

Quite simply, there hasn’t been a Copeland album as complete as Ixora.

Jinx leaves the band with more paths to explore going forward; they may either continue to refine the warmly gothic sounds found here or may embrace a different facet of Sports. It seems apparent after Jinx that they will deftly execute whichever option they choose.

Tarot Classics so efficiently sets to buoyant, energetic music a viewpoint that is not only discontent but increasingly disinterested. And it's all somewhat hidden, because party tunes these can still be.

The surprise is in just how much White Crosses succeeds at blurring the dividing line between punk rock ethos and boistrous radio rock.

Unbridled youthful vigor may now be but a distant speck in The Futureheads' rearview, but the joy of pop music still rings through in their every note.

Rather than dialling in the same record with a different twist every two years, Desaparecidos have crafted another mission statement.

The recorded calls between Ty and his brother that crop up repeatedly develop their characters while the story, for T.C. at least, remains stagnant. Free T.C. places an emphasis on the intimate, human relationship between these two men.

Much like The World Is A Beautiful Place... and their new record Harmlessness, Foxing have set a new standard with Dealer not just for emo, but for indie and alternative rock across the board.

We Don't Even Live Here is the weirdest, angriest, and best P.O.S album to date.

Put simply, Mount Moriah is a compelling debut full of candidness, thoughtfully well crafted and relatable lyrics, beautiful vocals with the ability to mesmerizing, and dare I say it, already an aura and element of timelessness destined to surround it.

Phantogram have put forth a collection of heady and stimulating songs primed for in-the-dark listening.

Unfortunately, the album delivers nothing remotely as snappy as Furr's more immediate sonic treats and there are only a scant few moments when it seems to aim at serving up anything more than your garden variety folk-rock songs.

Largely, (III) is an excellent album. Crystal Castles have not just recreated their first two records, they have developed as a band and their sound has morphed greatly.

The record isn't bad, it's actually enjoyable. But the band has continued in its trend toward becoming more of a hard rock band and less of the punk icon it used to be.

Welcome to The Low Anthem's Smart Flesh, where folk music doesn't need to be reinvented for it to come alive – just performed. If you're looking for a solid folk spooker to open the year, your search ends here.

Take the time to listen to this album, front to back. Pick up on the subtleties and metaphors, because you don't hear this kind of poetry from a band every day.

While it may not always work out in his favor, the high points here far outweigh the lows, and the takeaway from At.Long.Last.A$AP should be that Rocky is on his way to something even better once he finds his footing.

It’s cheeky, groovy, and it always sounds as though it’s teetering on the edge of being a genuine irritant.

Instant Gratification is impressive and for the most part feels like a strong return to form for a band that's well adjusted in its own sound and aura, as Dance Gavin Dance continue to be an anomaly in a mostly tired and boring scene.

Once again, they have created an album that sounds very little like their past recordings and yet still sounds exactly like The Twilight Sad.

On New Moon they take a wide range of sounds and somehow make them all their own, and if you can keep up with all the "genre-hopping," this is certain to be one of the most unique and interesting records you'll hear this year.

Animal Joy represents a remarkable band in their prime of their career and is a stunning success on every level.

Rice hasn’t changed his sound much, but his writing is still every bit as visceral as it always has been, and his long-awaited third album, called My Favourite Faded Fantasy, absolutely lives up to the legacy of his previous work.

It should be viewed as a major step-up from Reach For The Sun.

Tape Deck Heart may not be quite as good as the phenomenal England Keep My Bones, but it’s a quality release with excellent lasting value that will be a mainstay on album of the year lists in 2013.