Music for Psychedelic Therapy isn't as overwhelming as Hopkins' previous two albums, but it's still an enlightening trip inspired by a lifetime of profound experiences.

In all, This Old Dog is a logical continuation of DeMarco's musical explorations, but the maturation of his songwriting is what gives it gravitas.

May Your Kindness Remain impacts with these evocative snapshots of the 99-percent, but it also does so with Andrews' rich voice and melodicism as well as a lingering sadness.

All in all another strong outing from the Newcastle band, it dwells in a cloudy blend of dreams and creeping nightmares, unsettling yet captivating.

Kasabian have been a band of post-Brit-pop possibilities from the get go, so bringing in techno, ethnic sounds, and an orchestra is coming home for this impudent crew.

The album winds up with trace echoes of all eras of Costello, but that's only a reflection of how National Ransom is a masterwork in the traditional sense: he's summoned all his skills to deliver an album that summarizes his world view.

It's not a record that wallows in hurt, it's an album that functions as balm for bad times.

Here is a ruminative, inward-looking album of folk-inflected beauty.

An artful mix of focus and atmosphere, Real High may be Nite Jewel's finest moment to date.

Nothing here sounds precisely new -- this is the aesthetic that gelled around the time of High Violet, yet the skill in the craft is married to a brightness in outlook that lets First Two Pages of Frankenstein operate on two parallel paths: it can serve as moody atmosphere or reward close listening.

The world will always need songs about heartache, revenge, and bidding good riddance to someone; though Young delivers them with style, there's a sense that she's got more to offer.

For those on board with the group's flagrant disregard for conventional songwriting, Deep States is willing to descend even further down the rabbit hole, with the band offering a good time despite all the twists and turns.

Perhaps it doesn't have the kinetic energy or sense of adventure that mark the genre's true classics from No Dice till Girlfriend, but Alternative to Love also exists in an era that's enamored with the past and doesn't take many risks, and on those terms, it's the perfect power pop album for its decade.

The combination of Parker's inspired production, Prochet's lovely singing and evocative songwriting, and the perfect balance the duo strikes between pop and art makes Melody's Echo Chamber a rather stunning debut.

As wacky as their previous efforts but driven by a greater purpose, Twisted Crystal finds Guerilla Toss hitting a new high.

While the comparisons were apt at the time, 'Kiss with a Fist' turned out to be a red herring in the wake of the release of Lungs, one of the most musically mature and emotionally mesmerizing albums of 2009.

Gibson's reedy voice lacks power, especially when she forces the Ella Fitzgerald affectations, but when she dials back the theatrics and exposes the talented singer/songwriter within, as she does on the sweet and soulful "Milk-Heavy, Pollen-Eyed," the results are downright magical.

Well worth the wait, Drift Code is the sound of an artist coming into his own on his own time.

Careful listening reveals a newfound looseness and emotional range here.

Alias has created his most welcoming and positive dream world on Resurgam, an album where the creaks comfort and the low cloud cover comes off as heavenly.

More of an experience than a set of songs, Shook's stunning, often harrowing journey of surviving and resisting is well worth taking.

LOTTO is disorienting and messy, but there's undoubtedly something real and honest about it.

It's like listening to early New Order records for the first time, waiting for the next one with a little bit of excited anticipation to see what's going to happen next with every new song.

The addition of meandering, deeply scuffed instrumentals like "(You Can't Hide)," "Maine Vision," and "(Crowded)" come off a bit like unnecessary exercises marring the terrain. For the most part, though, Bonny Doon is a charmer, rambling contentedly down its lost highway of rickety guitar pop.

Strict Joy is a joy from start to finish, as few bands manage to mix intimacy and sweeping songcraft with such finesse.

The album is endlessly engaging, offering a look inside the band's collective head as a carefree playground of sounds where dour string sections melt into watery piano loops, driving electronic drum samples, and spirals of angelic vocals without missing a beat.

Despite a few sleepy moments on the album's second half, Strange Geometry has more flair and movement than Violet Hour, and perfects the band's ability to be uplifting and heartbreaking at the same time.

Losing Sleep is a heartwarming tribute to Collins and a statement that, although he's still on the mend, he's still got a lot more to give.

Pinback don't disappoint with their fourth record, Autumn of the Seraphs.

These songs sound like they were written as she was fed chocolate-dipped strawberries while sprawled out on a bed cloaked with rose petals.

Sorpresa Familia is a portrait of a band that's grown stronger musically and personally in the face of hardship, and the wisdom and freedom Mourn display on these songs is the best revenge they could get.

Outland is a bit more rhythmic and bass-heavy than his previous two albums. There's a much sharper bite to the way he uses distortion here, and the tracks with beats sound monstrous.

It's a testament to his vision and do-it-all ability that he can work with roughly 50 fellow producers and guest artists and line up the results for an hour-long set with tracks that flow forth like they're being decanted.

Smote Reverser is undeniably an Oh Sees record, with all 20 years of the band's history coming through every note played and sung, but it feels like a huge step into something new that's sure to be just as exciting and unpredictable.

The band cultivates a rich collection of emotionally complex instrumental soul, with precise musicianship meeting inspired production and a deeply studied obsession with the often sampled and less often acknowledged obscure geniuses of soul music.

The score is a thoroughly stunning work, showcasing Clark's versatility as a composer and producer, and providing a suspenseful, exciting listening experience.

Shauf clearly didn't want to repeat himself, and he hasn't, even though the soft suede of his voice still dominates the tracks, seeming even stronger when his characters are in emotional retreat. One might be tempted to play this story for laughs, and it's commendable this album feels straightforward and sincere, even at its least plausible and possibly blasphemous.

The King of Whys is still more intimate than any of Kinsella's prior bands, like American Football or Owls, or even Joan of Arc. The album is otherwise not likely to stand out among Owen's catalog, but it's still an affecting and worthwhile effort from an artist who's as reliably tuneful as candid.

Shape Shift with Me feels considerably lighter than its predecessor: Grace is reveling in her mess, resulting in an album that is lighter, fleeter, hookier, and more fun than its predecessor.

Make It Be is more than a pleasant diversion or an oddball one-off: It's the work of two artists of great worth firing on all cylinders. Fans of both Moore and Falkner should be thrilled by the results.

Working with the Australian wildmen gives Brettin's work an unpredictable nature not found on Mild High Club albums. This mutual benefaction means Sketches of Brunswick East is a collaboration that works wonders for both sides and will also make fans of both groups very happy.

As with all of the band's work, this album is inspiring and life-affirming.

More transformative than dour, Head of Roses is a journey toward healing and marks another strong entry in Flock of Dimes' growing catalog of work.

When F&M stick to simple dance melodies and wound-up instrumental grooves, they're as good as anyone else out there.

Although she remains by far the most interesting figure in hip-hop, This Is Not a Test! has more filler than Elliott's allowed on a record since 1999's Da Real World.

It's difficult to imagine how Badly Drawn Boy could've improved on The Hour of Bewilderbeast any better than this astonishing work.

Partly glamorous and fully imaginative.

It's an album that kills with catchiness.

13's strange, frustrating combination of expert musicianship and self-indulgence reveals the sound of a band trying to find itself.

At its best sounds like a suicidal combination of Blur and the Divine Comedy.

There is no band like out there like Le Butcherettes and A Raw Youth proves it.

Anyone willing to make the leap with the band will find that the adventurousness and exploration displayed by all involved pay off with yet another impressive Woods album to add to their collection.

Its six anthems burn with Ilunga's desire to prove himself, and the years he spent refining Noirwave paid off: His vision of a proud pan-African culture is in clearer focus and more relevant than ever.

They seem to become more themselves with each album, and Plum finds them at their most immediate and compelling.

Flasher appear to have arrived fully formed, with a deeply satisfying debut that's both coherent and imaginative.

Thankful N' Thoughtful is a solid outing from an outstanding singer who knows how to growl, croon, grumble, praise, and jump for joy with her vocal phrasing--whatever makes the song live and breathe.

Midlake might be stuck in the '70s, but they make it sound like the best place on earth.

This isn't just a logical follow-up to 2008's excellent The City That Care Forgot, it's close to a career-defining summation from one of America's most important musicians.

Bicep's debut album essentially delivers what fans have come to expect; for newcomers, the duo revisits some of the more open-hearted elements of '90s dance music without succumbing to the period's cheesiest trappings.

As with Cabral's previous album, The Turning Wheel has several standouts along with a handful of other tracks that don't leave as much of an impression. However, this is undeniably her best-produced work yet, and clearly demonstrates her impressive growth as an artist.

Quite simply, Alive & Wired captures a great band on a great night.

Her voice is too sweet and girlish to command, her melodies mellifluous but not grabbing--but Heroes & Thieves flows easily, and it's a nice return to the strengths of her debut.

Rick Ross keeps a very good thing going on Teflon Don, arguably his best album to date.

If you're in the mood for a few laughs and some well-directed anger from a guy with something to say and a knack for saying it well, Todd Snider is just the man you've been looking for.

Book of Bad Decisions is an excellent late-era entry into the band's vast catalog, a natural product of their enduring chemistry and dedication to their legion of fans.

Given that these musicians have been working together for the better part of 25 years, it should come as no surprise that XOXO still feels like a Jayhawks album, but while conventional wisdom in rock history tells us a band is running short on ideas when they start letting the drummer write more songs, in this case it means they're coming up with new ideas that are working well, and that's welcome news.

By the time they close with the fiery Motown vamp "Love Don't," Rateliff and his band have covered a nice range of moods on what is their most diverse release yet.

Black Hole Superette is yet another successful Aesop Rock record which artfully details and comments on the remarkable aspects of everyday life.

Given the strength of this album, it's hard to wait for the second part to arrive.

Sever the Wicked Hand [is] one of the strongest efforts of their career.

Haunting as it may be, A Church That Fits Our Needs succeeds on nearly every level.

They are ruthlessly efficient, unmerciful, redundant, triumphant, and wholly invested in darkness, volume, destruction, and little else.

Cold World is an example of what Daptone and the retro-soul crowd are doing right, and it's an authoritative and affecting piece of work.

Toledo is young enough that it's premature to call The Scholars a masterpiece, though it's unquestionably his finest work to date and one of the best albums of 2025.

Jean Grae continues to improve in every respect, but the negative aspect is that too many of the beats bleed into one another.

The original deserves the top spot, but think of this as the "Godfather Part II" of reckless boom-bap rap and you've got an idea of how well this Blackout! satisfies.

The packaging is beautiful and the intentions are admirable, but The Bowie Years tells us nothing essentially new about this vitally important moment in Iggy Pop's career, especially since outside of the disc of rarities, chances are good many committed Pop fans already have most of this in their collections.

This is avant-punk for the ageless with songs that could appeal to the crustiest post-punk fanatic and those young enough to be living through their first global crisis.

There's more than enough gas left in Goat's tank to keep them riding in style for years to come.

It makes for a record that's their strongest, most cohesive yet, even if it isn't quite as weird or compelling as it should be given the group's lofty ambitions.

Though die-hard Mogwai fans are probably the most likely to pick this up, Government Commissions works so well that it could also double as a Mogwai greatest-hits collection.

Half Divorced is Pissed Jeans' chosen form of therapy for folks who really, REALLY don't like Mondays. Or most of the rest of the week.

Rose isn't trying to be all traditional country here, or even all straight pop either, but somehow she effortlessly melts the two together, and this set is definitely a winner, full of solid playing and, of course, Rose's easy and comfortingly wise vocals.

As delightfully stylish and immediate as Supernature is, it's still hard to escape the nagging feeling that Goldfrapp could make its ethereal sensuality and pop leanings into something even more compelling.

This a major step forward and for the adventurous hip-hop fan, it could very well be appropriately titled.

While producer Dave Cobb's arrangements don't self-consciously re-create every element of the musical eras the sisters dig into, they don't add any superfluous modernizations either, keeping the sonic framework just as timeless-sounding as the Secret Sisters' style itself.

While Walker doesn't push his sound forward that much, little of what's here is forgettable, and it's all constructed with a good time in mind.

With all of his projects, Barnes continues to challenge himself and his audience, and Compassion's fascinating mix of power and atmosphere is the most finely honed version of Forest Swords yet.

He constructs ten sturdy songs that give Mr. Jukebox the foundation to be something more than nostalgia. By exceeding so well in his craft, Hedley makes the old sounds feel new again.

Fortunately, Jepsen is just as committed to her music as she is to the ideal of true love, and the way she's grown without sacrificing her uniqueness makes Dedicated a master class in what a 2010s pop album can be.

All Day is too playful to be considered mature, but for the first time it feels like a consistent album and there are definite signs of Girl Talk maturing as an artist. Above all, it's a whole lot of fun.

Cyrus will probably never settle on just one or two sounds to express herself, but her voice and vision are strong enough on Endless Summer Vacation to suggest she'll never need to.

Doolittle is nothing if not steady, making all the right moves at the right times, sounding at once like a seasoned pro and someone who feels everything she sings while never forcing or faking anything out. It's one of the smartest, most likable albums from an American Idol alum yet.

Whether this is a one-off or a bridge to something more substantial, it's satisfying in the present and will likely increase in stature as years pass.

Busy and engrossing, Arcology marks an exhilarating development in Thug Entrancer's sound.

The Wasted Years is a fine collection of works by an overlooked and sometimes underestimated band.

It's one of those rare albums where dropping the needle at different spots in the same song would yield wildly different sounds, but every move is so gradual and well thought out that the wild changes and potentially jarring clashes blend into one another seamlessly.

On DMIZ the rapper finds a third gem in the post-T&Y crown, building his incisive pen into smaller frameworks -- with stunning consequences.