Vladislav Delay is a master sound sculptor, and he's able to shape chaotic disarray into something strong and stimulating. Along with both Rakka volumes, Isoviha is some of his most exciting work.

While the story presumably makes more sense if one had the opportunity to witness the installation, or listen to the audio fiction (released several months after the album), Escapology still works as a stunning experience in its own right. Heavy on brief interludes, filled with buzzing and whirring noises as well as computerized voices, the more developed, beat-driven tracks are incredible fusions of multiple styles of futuristic dance music, showcasing some of Kode9's most complex sound design to date.

This trio displays a kinetic spontaneity even as their discipline shines through. As individuals, they are fluid and attentive; they react to and guide one another sensitively, confidently, and instinctively. Under Sorey's leadership, they reveal that these old nuggets still have plenty of mystery in them ripe for discovery in the right hands.

Where she used to dwell in the shadows, on Something More Than Love she's basking in daylight. Within that brightness, she finds plenty of different textures and sounds, creating music that's every bit as atmospheric as her earlier records but carrying an appealingly lighter vibe.

It expertly combines these global roots traditions with hip urban sounds in a distinctive mix that's at once contemporary and timeless. Well worth the long wait, this is the kind of creative, far-reaching, accessible album that comes along once in a generation.

Compared to the grander constructs of their latter-day Oh Sees albums, A Foul Form is a hit and run job where the music jumps in, leaves everyone stunned, and splits before the cops can show up. It's a manic blast of pure energy with lots of smarts if you're looking for them, and demonstrates Osees are never short on daring, ideas, and the skills to make them work.

As it stands, Chopper's ear-candy synths and vivid production simply add new layers of intrigue to Kiwi Jr.'s unshakable foundation of consistently strong (and pervasively catchy) indie rock songwriting.

There's a haunted, kaleidoscopic quality to No Rule Sandy that has the feeling of listening to an old phone message from a loved one you might have forgotten, or watching grainy home movies -- familiar, yet new.

McCombs ultimately delivers one of his catchiest and most uplifting albums to date, while touching on enough various musical styles, improvisation, relaxed melodicism, light hooks, and wit to satisfy fans of most any of his previous work.

Touching on Hot Chip 's classic themes and sounds as much as it does, Freakout/Release isn't an entirely clean slate, but it does offer some fresh perspectives on their music along with one of their strongest batches of songs in some time.

Doe and his accompanists sound fully engaged even when this music is whisper-quiet, and it's impressive that a record that sounds this casual is so compelling.

Even with the compilation-like format of a new voice on every song and unexpected left turns of style and sound, Thyrsis of Etna quickly becomes a singular world of its own, guided by Miszczyk's spacious production and the environment it creates for his collaborators to take chances with their performances.

Though composed and demo'ed in disparate, less than ideal circumstances, Ancient Astronauts is remarkably holistic in its execution, revealing the band's arrival at yet another creative peak.

Even at its most expansive, Success never feels indulgent, and its directness makes it one of the band's most exhilarating records.

With the Mountain Goats, John Darnielle has created a vehicle where he finds ways to surprise the listener in fine ways each time out, and Bleed Out is more proof that he's one of the best storytellers indie rock has ever produced.

Although Crushing is a hard act to follow, Jacklin pulls it off gracefully here, with an album whose dramatic arc and songs hold their own.

Whether it's a nod of recognition and a helpful hand ("Throne") or a brief dalliance in the moonlight ("Dressed in Black"), All of Us Flames' mission statement is one of resistance, inclusion, and the healing power of finding and protecting your tribe.

Let's Turn It into Sound is a complex, angular construction, yet it's not a demanding, impenetrable work, as Smith invites the listener to join her on a spirited, boundless journey.

At so many points throughout Mint Chip, it's really hard to tell if there's anyone steering the ship anymore, and that balance of madness and control provides the album's most exciting moments.

As a whole, Heavy Rocks [2022] is demanding, wild, and raw, yet needs to be heard in a single listening session. After three decades together, Boris continue to willfully and eagerly engage a tense musical restlessness that keeps them sounding unsettled, ambitious, often feral, and in a class of their own.

King may be letting his feelings spill onto the page here -- his originals were written in the wake of a bad 2021 breakup -- but his signature stamp isn't emotionality so much as it's enthusiasm. He gets a thrill out of cranking up his amp and trying to sing as loud as his guitar, and that's the energy that truly fuels Young Blood.

Everything I Know About Love is a strong first showing from Laufey, an effortless blend of old and new that manages to both comfort with familiarity and excite with possibility.

Stunning playing, unexpected turns, and precisely detailed sonic architecture are all commonplace elements of Kikagaku Moyo's sound and the stylistic tangents and world-building atmospheres of Kumoyo Island feel more even more like a statement than any of the band's already seriously crafted previous albums.

Physical Thrills lives up to the title, delivering one of the band's best statements to date.

Garden Gaia is a varied presentation of the different routes Pantha du Prince has taken over the years, but its different styles contrast more than they conflict, offering up some of the project's most captivating material to date.

Broken Gargoyles is yet another tremendous work from one of the most singular, incomparable artists of her era.

Yungblud is fun, catchy, and very accessible, offering punk spirit without ever being truly dangerous or too explicit.

There's a lot to like among these ten tracks that offer a fairly wide tonal range while still adhering to a central vibe of cool grooves and big melodies.

It's a tense and impatient record, even by Megadeth's standards, and re-affirms the band's status as completely essential metal deities who are still operating on a level of excellence most of their peers fell from decades ago.

There's certainly a hooky immediacy to much of Keep on Smiling, but it's given depth by Two Door Cinema Club's increasingly artful and sardonic pop approach.

Spirituals pushes Santigold's music forward while shoring up its strengths -- and for perhaps the first time since her debut, it feels like art that she had to make for herself.

Ozzy sounds hypercharged throughout Patient Number 9, continuing the unlikely late-in-the-game comeback he began on Ordinary Man, and besting that album by taking more chances.

On the whole, Williams sound engaged, energized, and curious, a winning combo that makes for an appealing listen.

The album also delivers on vulnerable, rock-solid songs, a juxtaposition the Beths continue to master.

At every turn, Diablo puts pleasure front and center, and it's a lot of fun to hear Gurnsey reimagine what gets the dancefloor moving.

Aiming for an even wider international audience, the English-heavy Born Pink matures BlackPink with stronger production, more personal lyrics, and a bold conviction that cannot be contained.

The trio were always capable of more than mere spaced-out jams, but these four tracks organize all the bliss, curiosity, darkness, and contemplation Bitchin Bajas have shown in the past into something deeply considered and perfectly designed.

Like Neptune offers a glimpse into one man's heart and soul while reminding us how he got where he is today, and it's an impressive LP from an artist who has some stuff to get off his chest and can still powerfully entertain as he does so.

While most of The Trouble with Fever concerns itself with personal issues, it isn't insular; the sound is alluring and open, an invitation for relaxation as much as it is for reflection.

An album that, if challenging, successfully mixes religious motifs with a balance of tactile, earthbound textures and hypnotically dreamy, alien atmospheres.

There is no question that The Bootleg Series, Vol. 7: That's What Happened 1982-1985 will cause controversy among jazz fans. But it isn't for them. It's for Miles Davis fans and presents an unvarnished taste of him -- from the cutting room floor no less -- attempting to reinvent himself one last time.

The band's confluence of rough-edged workingman's rock and unique melodic character was arguably never stronger than in 1970, and At the Royal Albert Hall offers a snapshot of just how strong that combination could be on-stage.

The album's production is warm, spacious, and full of depth, but not in an overwhelming way. Ali is casual-sounding yet inspired, and a tremendously inviting listen.

Weather Alive nestles into a comparatively hushed, atmospheric blend of acoustic and electronic timbres that's meticulous and nebulous at once.

Mid-album "Silence," a Homeric ballad in which Smith soars through the cosmos on a delicate rainbow of synth and chimes before crashing to the earth in a meteor shower of over-driven electric guitar squelch and digital distortion. It's a bold, deeply emotive moment, evoking the heartfelt style of Peter Gabriel. That these tracks, as with all of EBM, feel both familiar and unexpectedly fresh speaks to the alchemical spark between Editors and Power.

Maybe it'd be easier to digest if it was broken into a series of EPs, but part of the point of Typical Music is that it offers an immersion into an expansive, eccentric worldview. It needs all of its messiness to paint a full portrait.

Music for Animals might seem daunting due to its length and starkness, but it's actually one of Frahm's most listenable albums, rewarding immersion and half-ignored background placement alike.

Anderson's gift is less about her technical virtuosity, than in her ability to contain complex moods and emotions in even the sparest of parts. Aptly titled with its comma-assisted double meaning, Still, Here is indeed a meditation on both resilience and stillness of the mind.

They may never lose all their restlessness -- nor should they -- but it's undeniable that Cool It Down is one of their most consistent albums.

By the time the title track brings the album to a close with mournful synths and drums that sound like they could punch holes in the sky, Exister finds Vasquez reclaiming all of himself with painful eloquence.

I Ran Down Every Dream arrived when McLain was 82 years old, and if it's not likely to be as big a hit as "Sweet Dreams," it sets the record straight that he was and remains an artist well worth knowing.

Ocean offers a document of spontaneously created music-making of a very high order. A snapshot of a moment in time, the energy, creativity, and surprise offered here are a delight.

Though Pye Corner Audio didn't necessarily need make such a drastic change, Jenkins pulls it off brilliantly, and Let's Emerge! celebrates the beauty of his music like never before.

On The Bible, Kurt Wagner bravely steps into new territory both musically and lyrically, and it's a beautiful and frequently moving experience.

The cooperative spirit, the canny interplay, the imaginative, boundary-less compositions and solos, and the dedication and sophistication to make music -- no matter how difficult or wide-ranging -- make The Bad Plus at once compelling and compulsively listenable.

Nymph isn't exactly the type of album full of bangers that one might have previously expected from Shygirl, but it reveals a greater depth to her personality, and it's consistently inventive and awe-inspiring.

The Bordeaux Concert is not for the Jarrett beginner, but for seasoned fans of his many solo recordings, that are, after all, responsible for a sizeable portion of his legendary reputation. The dialogue he engages in with the piano here challenges its own assertions with an unassuming, even reverential authority. This is not only masterful, it soulful, interrogatory, and virtuosic.

As dense as the mix gets, it never suffocates, and all of the instruments are allowed to breathe easily. Shebang is an inventive, vibrant work that constantly surprises and uplifts.

Though Loose Future lacks a bit of the grand-scale drama of Honest Life and Old Flowers, it's full of well-crafted songs performed with the skill and passion they deserve, and it's another worthy album from a songwriter who only gets better as she matures.

Throughout the album, Dungen try new things without getting caught up in the excitement of changing their sound, successfully evolving rather than merely throwing random ideas at the wall and seeing what sticks.

Charlie offers hope to both the singer and to sympathetic listeners, closing this very relatable chapter of his life with optimism hard-won through this catchy pop package.

Revitalized, Bush is reborn with The Art of Survival, an essential late-catalog installment that re-energizes their sound with fresh tricks and newfound purpose.

With Being Funny in a Foreign Language, Healy and the 1975 do seem to have matured, confidently jumping off the ropes and back into the center of the pop music ring.

Throughout Cherry, Snaith creates a new kind of tension in Daphni's music, as well as a spontaneity that seduces his audience into movement ever more cleverly.

Tableau is definitely the work of a young band growing and exploring, looking for new territory to explore, new feelings to delve into, and exciting sounds to dig into.

CHAOS NOW* is defined not just by Dawson's genre hopscotching, but by how he manages to make every new style he inhabits his own. His music has always been a little all over the place, and with the increasingly strong songwriting showcased here, it becomes clear that being all over the place is the entire point of Dawson's restless artistry.

Lo is maturing but holding onto the most important parts of herself. Dirt Femme gives the confessional, sexual, and danceable sides of her music equal time and offers a fuller portrait of her music than we've heard before.

Well-sequenced and brimming with heartfelt energy, Capricorn Sun is an inspired effort.

The Watkins Family Hour tackles a number of different emotions, winding up with a record that's simultaneously casual and deep, a testament to the power of community arriving at an hour where such bonds are often tested.

Filled with casually brilliant moments, Component System with the Auto Reverse is easily one of Open Mike Eagle's most enjoyable efforts.

Returning after a five-year studio hiatus (ages in the Hitchcock discography), the esteemed sorcerer of pop surrealism delivers a more than worthy successor to his acclaimed 2017 self-titled effort.

Regret, longing, and grief fill the other songs, but Lusk's soaring, whole-hearted articulations of hope and reassurance prevent this transfixing half-album from being an unqualified downer.

Although this monochromatic palette tends to highlight the limits of co-producer Jack Antonoff's bag of tricks -- nothing here feels surprising, even when he's playing with textures and teasing out the music's dream-pop elements -- the narrow focus is the main attributes of Midnights, as it plays to Swift's sense of control and craft: she may be singing about messy emotions but she sculpts those tangled feelings into shimmering, resonant songs.

While it doesn't always reach Sinning's heights, the deeper sexuality, deeper grooves, and deeper understanding Daniel seeks and finds on Is It Going to Get Any Deeper Than This? make it a triumph in its own right.

As good as OFF!'s previous releases were, they (in classic hardcore style) sounded like they were produced in hit-and-run style, with the band cutting them live with minimal overdubs. Free LSD, on the other hand, aims to be something more; in its intensity and vision, it succeeds, and it's a gloriously weird triumph.

Arriving after such a long hiatus and during a period of global tumult, Broudie's sweet melodicism and gentle vibes are more welcome than ever on this appealing return to form.

It's mature music played with the energy and passion of youth, full of experience and tenderness but never complacent. It's no wonder that the band have inspired so much devotion since they have never lost the inspiration behind their music and Crybaby is one more shining example of that.

There's nothing sensationalist about the album's most brutal lyrics, and they're balanced out by the record's sly sense of humor and casually innovative production.

Her charm holds together The Loneliest Time's whirlwind of daydreams, confessions, and decades of pop allusions, making it another strong album from an artist who knows her niche and how to grow beyond it. At its best, it's pop written by and for those who dream of something, and someone, real.

It takes them to some different places, but the destinations are still quite satisfying, and this is a brave, compelling, and surprisingly moving set of songs. They seem to be glad to be making this music, and we can only be glad they've chosen to share it with us.

A concise, direct statement about how the world has shaped him, Hugo is Loyle Carner's most accomplished work to date.

Steady never feels rote -- these guys are in love with rock & roll, and their joy and passion is never far from the surface. If a new band made an album this good and joyously pleasing, they'd be hailed as heroes, and don't let the fact Sloan are grizzled veterans keep you from celebrating Steady on a regular basis.

Direction of the Heart is an album by a band that still has something to prove. They deliver big. Without forsaking their core sound, they offer listeners energized, anthemic, poignant, electro-charged rock & roll.

Incredible songs like "Dusted" and "Kisses to the Crying Cooks" from the Fast Japanese Spin Cycle EP don't make the final cut. Despite these omissions, the compilation does a good job of weeding out the filler, and exists as an annex of even more fleetingly amazing songwriting from GbV's defining era.

Understated and enveloping.

All told, it's a delight to hear that, over 20 years into Lewis and Best's partnership, they are pushing their recognizable but rarely formulaic sound into fresh territory.

Entergalactic is a late-era gem in his catalog, a multimedia gift to fans that expands his artistic scope and bodes well for more projects outside the confines of music.

Comradely Objects seems like some of the most complex, demanding music Horse Lords have made, yet, amazingly, it's also their most danceable album.

They approached the sessions with the idea of capturing the feel of "an old rock song from the '80s," specifically along the lines of Fleetwood Mac, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and Hall & Oates. Where the album really succeeds in this regard is in its strong, economical melodies and a certain warm, bittersweet depth to the songwriting.

Ultra Truth is easily one of Avery's most powerful releases.

While Where I'm Meant to Be is a logical follow-up to Ezra Collective's debut, it's a soulful, musically advanced, rhythmically infectious one, too.

Protector comes across as less lonesome than her debut, though the hushed mystique that is one of her hallmarks remains.

It doesn't hurt that these moments of unfiltered introspection are matched with infectious, uplifting melodies. Working with longtime executive producer Malay (Lorde, Frank Ocean), as well as collaborators like Jennifer Decilveo and Jesse Shatkin, among others, Fletcher coalesces all of the atmospheric vaporwave and clubby electro-pop that marked her previous work.

By not forcing Redcar's music into a pop template when it doesn't fit, the album reaffirms him as a resolutely independent artist and makes another fine addition to a nearly flawless discography.

The Work is Gold Panda's most honest, emotionally direct release.

While other 1D members might grab more of the public spotlight, Tomlinson proves his strength as a songwriter and voice for fans with more complex, deeper emotions.

The bottom line is that Kalak is a musical manifesto of South Indian futurism. It stands out from the ideologies, prejudices, and cultural conceits of the West, offering an instructive, wildly diverse aesthetic approach that demands to be observed, critiqued, and celebrated on its own terms.

And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow is another step forward for Weyes Blood, building on the stunning sonic and emotional environments she tailored on Titanic Rising and using that lushness as a means of processing destabilized times.