The resulting Violet Psalms is more measured, but no less distinctive (and destructive) than previous outings, delivering all of the architectural twists and turns, fragmented rhythms, and surreal narratives that have come to define the group over the years.

Rich and soothing, it's a focused and warmly crafted debut that sounds unlike anything else in Watson's previous recordings.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/gods-favorite-customer-mw0003172246

Throughout Wildness, Lightbody pushes his message with evocative lyrical imagery and the consoling empathy of someone who has fought the battle and emerged triumphant. The result is one of the most comforting and relatable inclusions in the band's catalog.

If the decision to make Tunnel of Love, Human Touch, and In Concert into double LPs means they're slightly cumbersome listens, they nevertheless sound wonderful, and that's the ultimate reason for acquiring this box: these records have never sounded--or have been presented--better than they are here.

Stylish and yearning, Love Yourself: Tear is BTS at a polished and focused peak, cohesive enough to feel like it was conceived in one particular period rather than cobbled together like some of their previous releases.

The result is an impressive step forward, an album that finds Natalie Prass straddling the border between the future and the past, just as she promised.

There's a palpable sweetness to music that endures, even when a production is as bright and glistening as it is on Shawn Mendes. That bodes well for the future that Shawn Mendes is so evidently planning for.

Kanye West grants taut, grimace-inducing beats, assisted infrequently by Mike Dean and Andrew Dawson, enabling Pusha to pack each one of the seven tracks with characteristically trenchant and terse rhymes. The lyrical focus is similarly laser-sharp.

Rhys' words may be filled with dread but his music offers solace in its deftly executed songcraft and reassuring soft focus, which means Babelsberg can soothe the very emotions it stirs up.

Like Going Back Home before it, As Long as I Have You benefits from Daltrey's diminished range, as it adds gravity and grit to his interpretation. This album also benefits from its tight backing band, which is graced with a swinging horn section but distinguished by Townshend playing a secondary, sympathetic role to Daltrey, helping to give this muscular, occasionally moving record an air of grace.

A really good album; one that shows Rault reshaping his sound and sounding even better than before.

Vibras is more consistent and varied than Energia. Its songwriting, performances, and production are truly inspired, making for an utterly compelling listen and one of the essential soundtracks of summer.

Noonday Dream can feel ephemeral at times, but never is it unpleasant, even when it's fishing for emotional truth in unstable waters. Introspection rarely feels this inclusive.

On Prequelle, Ghost deliver fully on the promises of earlier records. Their strengths--including one for imitation--are fully assembled and focused in an exercise of irresistible arena rock excess without sounding like a pastiche.

To dive into Whale City is to immerse yourself in the stranger side of rock & roll, but it's worth losing your mind over.

Li's defeat and grief are palpable, yet she delivers with such grace and control, which offers a glimmer of hope for the fellow romantically downtrodden. With production to match, so sad so sexy succeeds in providing a relatable therapy session for love's final gasps.

It is a music of sense and memory perceptions, a sonic projection equal to but different from the sources that inspired it. When all are assembled, they constitute a deep, mysterious, and occasionally disruptive journey into shade, texture, nuance, and seductive persuasion.

The extensively detailed liner notes feature interviews with the musicians as well as plenty of gorgeous photos, but the music itself is the main attraction, and it all sounds uniformly incredible.

It's an impressive formula for a debut, and one that succeeds whether listeners are tuning in more for the soundscape or more for the sentiment.

The Alligator Bride is louder and prouder than Mansion Songs, but it's also somehow more relaxed, as if there is nothing to prove. Hopefully, Miller will keep this rocking line-up together for the foreseeable future.

Without Tinsley nor the late LeRoi Moore, Dave Matthews Band doesn't seem as loopy or rangy as it did in its prime, yet this leaner sound suits a middle-aged Matthews who is comfortable in his skin yet restless in his mind.

A powerful tool for repairing a broken heart and indicative of an even brighter future, Lost & Found is satisfying and promising at once.

Soil captures a passionate, complex artist coming into his own.

Every track on this album is densely constructed, colorful, and unpredictable, and while it may seem lighthearted at first, it manages to cover a wide range of emotions. One of the most inventive debut albums of 2018, for sure.

With What Heaven Is Like, Wussy have made it clear they're not giving up their status as one of America's greatest indie bands just yet, and this is another dark but compelling album that deserves your attention.

Call the Comet is more accomplished than compelling, but there is pleasure in hearing how all the parts fit together so tidily.

Their sonic restlessness never falls off track into musical excess, but instead allows keen articulation of the plethora of identities found in non-Anglo culture, and denotes the places they intersect. Besides, you can dance your ass off while absorbing its coded messages. Bravo.