Smith was only getting started on Anxious, and its poignant, eloquent peek into teenage girlhood is something to be cherished.

Oar On, Penelope! is the sort of spontaneously joyous record that reminds us it's a great thing he's still with us and making music. He more than gets by with a little help from his friends.

While its backstory is conspicuous in its lyrics and title, the album doesn't play like an accommodation or something that's lacking, even if its quietly haunting, dramatic character was born of necessity.

It's a fantastic reminder of the side of GbV that's been underrepresented on some of their 2010s/2020s records: their ability to make fun, rambunctious rockers that are easy to sing along to.

"Butterfly Lands on a Flower," the soft, synthy final piece, sounds appropriately delicate and graceful, making a gentle comedown for an album that sometimes lays its emotions bare.

Hitting on the familiars and blanketing the listener with worthy obscurities is a one-way ticket to compilation glory, and CBGB: A New York City Soundtrack 1975-1986 is a triumph of sound and education that brings an important moment in time fully to life.

On first spin, Break It Yourself may sound like a typical outing, but repeated listens unveil an assembly of songs that are as verdant and mercurial as they are rooted in the Bird tradition.

It's rare that that source material is specifically evident while listening; at best it functions on a more energetic, subconscious level, making the typically nebulous sonic nostalgia of the chillwave/hypnagogic pop movement.

Howl finds Rival Consoles limiting his palette in order to creatively push himself, resulting in what is easily his most cohesive, expressive full-length to date.

Even though it's not as stylistically wild as prior efforts, Flux is a step forward for Poppy's songwriting and her ability to command a full band. No longer just the girl in the computer, she's become a fully realized human with this most authentic and earnest work.

On The Wilderness, Explosions in the Sky deconstruct and rebuild their sound from the ground up, giving it a revitalized sense of urgency and resulting in some of their most dynamic work yet.

It might take some time for older fans to adjust--its punk energy aims for the calves more frequently than the neck--but Sorry to Bother You contains some of the Coup's most vehement and focused output.

The lyrics sometimes reflect Tweedy's usual tropes as a writer, but Staples gives them a musical and emotional force that sets them apart. Her voice is in splendid shape for a septuagenarian, still supple and able to navigate the twists of the melodies while sailing confidently over the arrangements that fuse indie rock with the feel of '70s soul. ... Quite simply, this is an album America needs.

While Rose's music certainly has indie crossover appeal, in the grand tradition of classic country, How Many Times is a relatable pick-me-up for those who may be feeling down.

Hair represents the best possible outcome of the collaborative record.

If The Collective was punishing in its density, Play Me is its equal and opposite: leaner and more melodic without sacrificing invention. It's an album that reaffirms Gordon still knows how, and why, to push forward.

The stories are told over attractive folk/country/rock arrangements, which to some extent ameliorate the gloom.

If this is not the most live-sounding dance album made with synthetic instrumentation, it must be pretty close.

Quarantine is the addictive soundtrack to some kind of science fiction nightmare.

Brilliant Sanity's musings on uncertainty are some of their most confident songs yet.

Taken together, for its somewhat lofty inspirations and complex construction, Onism is above all a fun listen, full of discovery, whimsy, and musicality. And it's got a good beat.

New Path is perhaps the most challenging release yet from the already confrontational duo, and while it's not as accessible as Demain, it's still rewarding and often exciting.

She Remembers Everything is a challenging and rewarding set from an artist who is at the peak of her abilities, and if anyone needs to be reminded that Rosanne Cash is one of America's best and smartest songwriters, all they need to do is spend some time with these songs.

Human Question is the work of a powerfully good trio who've made it clear they are no ordinary roots rock outfit.

Native Sons is a tribute that manages to be more than a set of covers -- it shows what the band learned from these songs, as well as showing us where their long musical journey has taken them. It's essential listening from one of America's greatest bands.

If Smoke & Fiction proves to be X's final musical statement, they go out as they came in – unique, ferociously talented, and with plenty to say that's worth hearing, and they've stayed that way as the curtain falls.

More expansive than "Friend Opportunity," not quite as sprawling as "The Runners Four," Offend Maggie is among Deerhoof's most balanced albums.

They play Southern soul-rock in an era where the past is indistinguishable from the present, and how the band interlaces the old and the new on Sound & Color feels startlingly fresh.