Nothin' But Blood finds the hard-living and hard-playing one-man band Biram sounding as intense as ever.

There's a good chance we're going to get a full-on rock album from Jennings now that he's gotten this out of his system, but as an expression of his country soul, Shooter ranks with his best work to date.

Dissolution is the album The Pineapple Thief have been promising since 2012's All the Wars: it's poetic, erudite, emotionally powerful, and chock-full of musical imagination.

As Lo puts her stamp on all of Sunshine Kitty's different sounds and emotions, there's a breeziness that hasn't been present in her music since Queen of the Clouds.

Perhaps the only match for the cerebral weirdness and eventual beauty of Mars Volta's lyrics is their music itself.

For as much as Way refers to other acts, this is a thoroughly original work, a vibrant reflection of all his artistic obsessions.

Delta Spirit's commercial aspirations may be more apparent this time around, but they've done an awfully nice job in pairing that inclination with material that benefits from the slick production, resulting in their most cohesive (and television- and film-ready) collection of songs to date.

Rodriguez has been hinting at the ambition displayed on Lola for some time. What's surprising is how a record of such scope and imagination can be rendered so intimately and elegantly.

Tahoe is far from being simple, and is much more emotionally complex than the average ambient album.

Song for song, it's as strong as any of their records -- if anything, these 11 songs are the tightest they have ever been -- and Stuart Murdoch remains faithful to the aesthetic he essayed at the outset of his career, finding sustenance in the fine details, his obsessions carrying the weight of passion.

It's a tighter, less primitive album than its predecessor, but as such, it has a lot more to offer as well.

Blues Funeral, while an adventurous, strident, and complex album, will likely polarize longstanding Lanegan fans; but if they can't follow him into this new terrain, it's their problem.

Ultimately, with Alix, Generationals deliver quirky, catchy pop songs that stick in your head like DayGlo bubblegum on a hot summer parking lot.

It's a strong debut from an excitable band barely able to contain themselves as they blow through their songs like a friendly tropical storm.

Memoir of a Sparklemuffin greatly expands and dramatizes the sound and scope of her relationship laments, putting it in the territory of Lana Del Rey and Angel Olsen's most extravagant works.

Apocalypse is a song cycle that places the usually extremely inward-looking Callahan in the unlikely role of observer and interpreter of various American myths; myths both externally held and culturally self-referential, that inform the interior world of the protagonist.

Glass Animals' most cohesive and satisfying album to date, Dreamland is a well-deserved triumph that's as rewarding for fans to hear as it was for the band to make.

Bragg and producer Joe Henry, owner of the aforementioned basement where Tooth & Nail was recorded, make for a solid team, allowing their shared love of rural Americana to run wild and each song enough elbow room to get comfy by sticking to a pantry of few seasonings.

Acid Tongue is where Lewis finally pulls it all together and delivers one killer of a record.

While it's hard not to be overtaken with a sense of nostalgia while listening to this album if you knew these songs from back in the day, Phillips pulls them out of their original context and in the process reveals their strength is more timeless than one might have imagined.

An ambitious exercise of restraint, it's a lumbering beast that's minimal but still feels expansive. Epic, even.

While Fake Surfers might not have the immediate impact of Finberg's earlier albums, but it takes his music in some bold directions without losing its smart-alecky, catchy-despite-itself essence.

On this very nice debut, Spielbergs are a tough band to pigeonhole, boasting quality writing and a hooky approach that transcends whatever sonic space they occupy at a given moment.

These are doomy, bass-heavy arrangements, rife with layers of orchestrated sounds that build and swell with a sustained dramatic tension. Think Matthew Dear meets The Downward Spiral-era NIN and you'll get a good sense of the grayscale atmosphere Biliński has achieved here.

While the newer additions to Thurston's muse are all well and good, The Best Day is most exciting when he returns to his most familiar trademarks, again investigating a sound that has spawned generations of imitators but still sounds like no one else.

Devil sees them continuing to move forward again, and although Hale's presence will certainly be missed, fans of the band will find that the return of Frost and Owens more than makes up for the loss.

The record is good enough, and the band skilled enough, that even one year without a new album from them would feel like an eternity.

While the retro-future production on some of the songs gives Migration Stories a distinctive flair, it's still by and large a typical Ward joint, replete with all of the idiosyncrasies and retro affectations that have become a stylistic hallmark of his catalog. Familiar as it may sound, though, he doesn't skimp on quality and there is plenty to love about this latest entry in his impressive catalog.

It simply finds Stickles and his crew moving from one position of strength to another, and it's as bold and exciting as anything they've delivered so far.

The only thing that would have made it perfect would have been releasing the original demos alongside the redos so T&S devotees could do some compare-and-contrast work. That's an extra-credit quibble that can be easily dismissed, though, because in every other way Hey, I'm Just Like You is a vital addition to the Tegan and Sara catalog.

Stripped down but nonetheless gorgeous for it, the album is an inviting combination of heavy themes and unassuming delivery, and easily some of Hayden's most colorful and intriguing songwriting.

We Knew may be a less immersive listening experience than Kudos was, but it makes up for that by sounding better and having better songs.

Fifth State generally feels easygoing yet energetic, and informed of the state of the world while trying to achieve inner peace and enjoy life to the fullest.

Aisles is a bit of a one-trick pony, but a cool one that seems prime for themed dinner parties and TV sync placement.

Gravity Stairs may feel cozy, but it never feels lazy. Some of that surely lies in how the band chooses to camouflage its strong melodic core with fluid, shifting surfaces -- a decision that winds up emphasizing sound over song while also directing focus to the familial chemistry of the band.

It succeeds as an introduction to Charli XCX the Pop Star while retaining her whip-smart songwriting and attitude.

Drowaton pulses with ideas and energy, and there doesn't seem to be a musical style beyond the Mints' grasp.

She keeps up her end of the bargain, writing a batch of heartfelt songs and delivering them with her always lovely style.

At this point of the Brockhampton story, the boys have tempered the antics and wild-child energy of past releases, maturing with an authentic grace that will only further endear them to fans of past work looking for more substance and sentiment.

Embodying hard times as well as the way friends lift each other out of them, Oh No also exemplifies the drama, mystery, and deeply felt emotions that have made Xiu Xiu a vital musical force for decades.

Straightforward and relatably human, High as Hope may not be the rousing version of Welch from previous albums, but as a document of her personal growth, it's an endearing and heartfelt study of truth and self-reflection.

Together, usually accompanied by little more than acoustic guitar and piano, they create emotionally rich musical miniatures that only ever take up as much room--both musically and lyrically--as they need.

Culture clashes never sounded so good.

Things are decidedly darker this time around; although his music has always been psychedelic, Raposa's In the Vines aligns itself more with a bad trip than lazy, woozy-eyed stoner fare.

Bahdeni Nami's greatest appeal will be to newer fans who may prefer more contemporary production to the gritty lo-fi dabke aesthetic. That said, despite various flourishes, these producers try hard to remain true to Souleyman's spirit and, with only one exception, succeed in spades.

A wild funhouse of an album, Jewelleryis more challenging and idea packed (not to mention more fun) than a lot of self-proclaimed experimental music.

While this is definitely a darker album, the fuzzy synthesizers help to give the songs warmth, preventing the album from becoming suffocating.

The majority of Fundamental is like the majority of their great album Behavior in that repeat listens are required to do these rich songs justice.

Spoek makes the "hard truths" sound like "real talk" while putting some of the world's most innovative rebel music underneath.

It's an honest record, stripped of artifice, and it will hit you hard if you give it a chance.

This is a pure country album, loaded with fiddles, acoustic guitars, and close harmonies, but retaining the Chicks' signature flair, sense of humor, and personality.... An instant classic.

Even though there's little stylistic maturation in his approach since his first release in 1986, Yoakam's songwriting craft keeps improving, and any track from this album could be a hit single. With Tomorrow's Sounds Today, Dwight Yoakam has fashioned a contemporary roots-conscious country album whose qualities, like the artist's distinctive style, are timeless.

Beats and percussive effects are far more present and grounded in hip-hop as much as they are rooted in dub, which lend the tracks an organic touch never before present.

It's a nice blend of the self-conscious Flowers in the Dirt and the organic, natural Flaming Pie, combining the craft of the former with the attitude of the latter.

Between its fizzy lyrics, brittle guitar riffs, cheesy Casio keyboards, and primitive rhythms, the record seems very much out of touch with contemporary pop; its ebullience and innocence hark back to a time that now seems very long ago.

A well-made, funky, fun record that proves two things -- the Hi sound lives and Al Green still has it.

Even if The Concretes is slightly disappointing in some aspects, it also has more than enough charms in its own right.

Though Variaciones Espectrales might be too noisy to work as background music for some listeners and too experimental for the dancefloor, it's another accomplished, fascinating slice of sound/beats exploration from this consistently pioneering artist.

This is unfettered joyful listening, and in its own small way, even profound.

His debut for Domino, 2009's Insides, is his first record that many people will hear and it's a promising, but flawed, debut.

Chamber Music, with all its throwback collabos, only faintly reminds the listener of yesteryear, but track by track it satisfies with the core Wu members sounding purposeful and sometimes even united.

To be sure, this is recognizably within his comfort zone--as always, when you do it as well as he does, there's no need to change--but beneath that supple exterior there are a few surprises, chief among them the re-emergence of Strait the songwriter.

No longer young upstarts, they wear their years proudly on this terrific album, sounding like the veteran roadhounds they've always aspired to be.

It's not that he's become Sinatra, but over the nine songs of the release he brings his ruminative, elegant creative ear to some excellent partners in the Magik Magik Orchestra.

Genre-hopping, Indianapolis-based singer/songwriter Liz Janes' fourth studio album for Asthmatic Kitty plays fast and loose with traditional indie pop themes.

James Farm offers real compositional depth and spirited, sophisticated improvisation, making for a deeply satisfying listen and a promising debut.

Had it not been for the underground releases, this disc would be one of 2012's best debuts.

Everybody's Talkin' is what every live album should be: an accurate, exciting reflection of a band at its peak, playing full-throttle and providing plenty of surprises.

This collection is proof that Kylie is arguably the best pop singer of her era and more importantly, is fun from beginning to end.

Rather than offer anything new, they instead focus on re-introducing the band as a creative unit whose capacity for musical excellence is undiminished.

Forget the limiting rubric of country-pop: this is one of the best mainstream pop albums of 2012.

He's made an album that sounds so good and authentically psych-like, and one that wraps the listener up in a warm embrace of misty melodies and cobwebbed arrangements.

In the end, it's still just a live album, but this sideline release is a must for fans, recommended for the casual techno head, and worth checking if a pumping, hypnotic, and otherworldly journey sounds attractive.

A lot of the sounds they try on Love Triangles Hate Squares fit them, and their polish and savvy suits them as well as the slicked-back pompadours they wear on the album's artwork.

Quite a bit bluer and calmer, where her previous music featured the four-on-the-floor pep of traditional house, this album falls closer to witch house and the rainy gloom associated with trip-hop.

Nothing Can Stop Us is a triumph for the backing band, but Campbell's number has been due for years, and now that it's been pulled, it's time to wake the town and tell the people.

Perhaps it can be too sweet, too cloying at times, but it's warm and ingratiating, suggesting The Blow Monkeys can ease into a convincing middle age.

The album is full of straightforward and jangly guitar pop, full of hooks and production turns that would feel at home on mixtapes of early-'90s underground alternative acts, the likes of which Pritchard himself belonged to and came up with.

The Soul of the Hour confirms that Gallon Drunk are bloodied but unbowed, still raging against the world around them and just as powerful as ever.

It makes the album a true pleasure to listen to, and Physical World gives Game Preserve a run for its money as Davenport's best stuff yet.

Cook's second full-length, 2014's Twice, follows in the same path as her debut, featuring nine tracks dominated by Cook's smooth, slyly sexy voice and arrangements that keep the grooves light but dance-friendly at once.

Bright Side of Down should resonate with Gorka's fans and those of modern American folk music.

Real is a rare metalcore album with enough depth to demand repeat listening, which definitely won't disappoint the band's die-hard fans.

It's a nifty record: a double-edged throwback, evoking the singer/songwriters of the '60s but sounding like a different part of that decade, which is why its retro-ism winds up as invigorating.

The surfaces of Overjoyed might surprise a few longtime Half Japanese fans, but at heart this is still the passionate expression of a man who has embraced this life and its many curious possibilities, and that certainly fits with this group's narrative while allowing just a bit more room for new explorers to consider his world view.

Even if Museum of Love sometimes comes across as a sampler of DFA sounds past and present, it's an album that those who enjoy the label's output will almost certainly like, and a promising debut in its own right.

The only disappointment here is that the album is basically only five songs, so here's hoping it's just a taste of more to come.

Though Papich sometimes captures the state of an overloaded attention span almost too well, No No's fragments of meaning add up to some of his most fully realized music.

Times Infinity 1 is the Dears' most emotionally honest set of songs to date; it's the sound of a once dystopia-obsessed band wrestling with the idea that the light at the end of the tunnel might not be a train.

As a two-disc set, Bluenote Café feels a bit overstuffed and drawn out, but these recordings confirm the Bluenotes hold up better than many of Young's creative left turns in the '80s, and this is a thorough and entertaining look at an often overlooked phase in Young's creative journey.

he album seems to come closer to the lineage of synthesizer innovators like Raymond Scott rather than most techno or ambient artists, even if there's a relaxed, meditative feel to a lot of these pieces, and it showcase's Bourne's skill for exploring the vast capabilities of his instrument.

The unpretentious nature of the music and Graham's laid-back attitude give each song an everyman quality, presented by a youthful, wide-eyed raconteur who has just enough life experience to speak to a wide audience.

The album is a hypnotic, slightly silly expression of physical as well as spiritual desires.

While Minor Victories builds on its members' legacies, the band sounds more excited about the present and the future than looking back.

A consistently brooding and steadily paced set, The Exodus Suite plays like a set of torch songs, but for humanity's sense of well-being rather than a romantic lost love. Occasional imperfections from the live recording process lend extra doses of humanity to the eerie proceedings.

The result is a beautifully arranged but fleeting collection that could work a little harder to draw listeners in.

While the production is just a tad too polished to feel as gritty as Miller's best '70s works, the music is nevertheless in that vein and many of the songs are quite good, particularly the gospel-drenched Elton John number "Where Do the Guilty Go?" and the swaggering "Way Past Midnight" (performed with Lewis).

What Now is less eccentrically atmospheric than its predecessor, but their boisterous energy is intoxicating enough to win you over, and their sense of fun is palpable.