Ultimately, Fool isn't as satisfying as Jackson's more straightforward work of the '80s, but if this sometime suffers from too much ambition, Jackson clearly is good enough to come close to what he's aiming for, and in the moments where he connects, it's a truly impressive piece of work.

A thoroughly satisfying and intriguing record that pushes Fanfarlo toward new boundaries.

Truly a bold step forward for the band, the album takes Grooms to their next plateau the same way Daydream Nation proved Sonic Youth's breakthrough almost 30 years earlier.

Overall, Blind Spot works well on many levels. It shows the bandmembers aren't just exercising their nostalgic muscles while looking for a quick buck. It shows they are still capable of writing and recording very Lush-sounding music.

Keeping up with Children of Alice's quicksilver changes and hypnotic passages requires listeners' full attention, but it's well worth it--these ever-transforming soundworlds honor the magic that Broadcast tapped into with Keenan while suggesting an equally fascinating way forward.

Good proof that tranquil moments are just as powerful as deafening ones.

Wander/Wonder is an exercise in depth, a flowing suite of mermaid's lullabies that turn seductive.

Keith Troup, who was slain in 2015 and gets a moving tribute in the mixtape's highlight "King TROUP." The rest of the best comes from the empowering music that reflects the mixtape's title.

Hayashi's music can be hard to grasp at first, but it's clear that he's interested in channeling the spirit of all the music he loves while taking it to a different place, and listening to his music is a fun and mysterious experience.

The appealing thing about Soberish is how it holds two thoughts (and sounds) simultaneously, a record that revives the spirit of Phair's earliest albums while casually leaning into her middle age.

Eight is energetic, inspired, and hits with one melodic hook after another, capturing the sound of a band overjoyed to be back and having the time of their lives.

Their music is soothing, rustic, lonesome, and ethereal all at once.

While parts of Too show FIDLAR trying to find their footing, it's all part of their evolution and is not without its charms.

It showcases the strength of an 11-piece band willing to experiment as they assimilate inspirations--from Stax, Muscle Shoals, Motown, Delaney & Bonnie, blues, and jazz--and incorporate their various experiences into a new whole.

Where Vol. 1 presented shorter versions of singles from their earliest incarnation and shaped them into a seamless full-length, this set is different in approach and sound, though no less worthy. It covers a wider sonic scope and brings us up to 2009 in their evolution.

Though there are a few more abstract pieces -- like the brief, scattered "Got Me" -- as a whole, The Sunset Violent focuses on impressionistic snapshots and daydream-like reflections. It's easily the most unified record Mount Kimbie has produced, especially in stark contrast to their previous effort.

If you're a fan of Williams, there are no surprises here, just ten more great songs to add to a catalog that might one day get the credit it's due for the pop star's contribution to, what else, Brit-pop.

Just two-and-a-half hours and 34 tracks (including two hidden bonuses at the end of the third disc) of solid rhyming and beatmaking, most of them excellent, some of them brilliant, a handful of them merely good. That's quite a batting average.

It's a shame this little team [Dee Dee, producer Gottehrer and Raveonettes' Wagner]couldn't make more records like this.

If the format doesn't seem as fresh as it did back in 2016, when Full Circle was the first record released from the sessions, that's only due to it being the fourth in a series of albums. On its own merits, Still Woman Enough is strong and vibrant, a testament to Lynn's enduring gifts and place in the firmament of 20th century country music.

Thanks to the meticulous production values, the insane catchiness of the hooks, and the pure and true emotional underpinnings below all the gloss, the album is a total success of both sound and vision.

Sonically, this is right in line with Dylan's 2000s albums, the sound of a well-lubricated traveling band easing into the same chords they play every night, but this isn't strictly roadhouse rock & roll: Dylan remains fixated on pre-rock & roll American music, emphasizing the blues but eager to croon love-struck ballads.

All in all, UFO is another valuable addition to their canon, completed with skill and affection in equal measure.

In their best moments, No Joy not only expand on these ideas, but improve on them.

Fortunately for fans of their punishing past, New Moon smoothes out the edges without getting rid of them completely, leaving just enough rough patches here and there to remind listeners that there's still plenty of muscle hiding just below their languid façade.

Dense, powerful, wild, yet immaculately rendered, Animal Joy blends the expansive, cinematic scope of contemporaries like Other Lives and the National with the arty drama of "San Jacinto"-era Peter Gabriel.

A River Ain't Too Much to Love is a subdued, plaintive collection of songs that accompany silence; they encourage reflection without guile and unveil themselves without a hint of studied artifice.

Canada's greatest contribution to Americana since Blue Rodeo have been consistently topping themselves with each new album, and their sixth, New Seasons, is another triumph.