Naeem's debut album, Startisha, is beautiful and reaching.

Familiar yet unpredictable moments like these make Enter the Mirror a confident, dynamic celebration of Maserati's 20th year of reimagining the future of decades past with 20/20 hindsight.

Patience provides the most inspired-sounding one yet. It's just more proof that despite not being the flavor of the month anymore, Sondre Lerche is quietly releasing some of the best and most interesting pop music of his era.

G3 is heavy on bangers, with all tracks whizzing by in two or three minutes, and the album constantly stays sharp and exciting.

No longer masked by layers of texture, Summerlong allows Johnson to showcase his gifts for songwriting and psychedelic wandering in equal measure.

Survival's unguarded emotions -- the joy in creating a world in which to thrive, the pain endured along the way -- radiate an honesty that's all the more striking because it's so rare.

Lamb of God is a tense, yet confident album for taut and uncomfortable times.

This album is mature in the best ways without dimming its sense of purpose, and it presents three major talents in full command of their gifts and their ideals.

After such a reflective and mournful era with The Canyon, it's refreshing to see this usually energetic group kick it back into high gear with such control, hunger, and ferocity.

A sadder, wiser, and stronger album, Shadow Offering reflects big changes in Braids' world, but proves they're still at their finest when they dig into -- and sit with -- complex emotions.

No matter what direction his music takes on Sleep on the Wing, it's quintessentially Bibio, and spending more time with it is a joy.

The Black Dahlia Murder's superlative musicianship balances technicality, harmony, brutality, and mature sophistication on Verminous. While their style evolves somewhat here, it's a progression so smooth and in character, it's almost guaranteed to excite fans.

With Planet's Mad, Baauer charts a journey that elicits emotion through physical response, channeling rage and frustration through his songs in a cathartic release that plays like musical therapy for a galaxy's worth of ills.

Though happiness is elusive in Owen's world, beauty is not, and The Avalanche is a striking testament to Mike Kinsella's gifts, where even sadness can pay handsome rewards under the right circumstances.

Hearing Wire riff on their past and present so brilliantly makes 10:20 both a dream come true for longtime fans and a surprisingly good introduction to their music for newcomers.

It's retro soul at its absolute best, and anyone who has a partner who makes them feel the way Bryant feels about Ann Peebles on this LP has plenty to be thankful for.

None eclipse "Request" off VII, but the Kehlani collaboration "Morning" is a seductive delight, while the snaking (and accurately titled) "Boomin" is a treat for lovers of late-'90s R&B with explicit references to Blaque and much of the Swing Mob (plus an appearance from the latter's Missy Elliott). Confident diversions into breezy Afro-pop and underwater dancehall lead to a half-hour stretch covering various romantic woes.

The trio -- singer/keyboardist/guitarist Joel Robinow, bassist/guitarist Eli Eckert, and drummer/technician Raj Ojha -- who had played together in various incarnations in the Bay Area before forming Once & Future Band, not only sound like a veteran arena combo here but offer the material to make them shine.

If you've fallen out of love with indie rock -- or even if your devotion never so much as flickered -- Somewhere just might be enough to remind you why you loved the sound in the first place.

Khruangbin's music can still work as an ebullient, sun-baked soundtrack to daily activities, social gatherings, or cross-country road trips, but their songs have gotten more expressive and soul-searching, and Mordechai rewards closer listening more than any of their previous recordings.

Even when they slow down, there's a lot of excitement in Pottery's music. Though they frequently threaten to steamroll over anyone within earshot of Welcome to Bobby's Motel, the band have so much fun that their listeners probably won't mind.

Shah presents as a mystery wrapped in an enigma, when in reality she's just innately talented and resolute in her convictions. Unsurprisingly, the mesmerizing Kitchen Sink distills those two predilections into something that's both compelling and otherworldly.

Shygirl's hard-edged yet sensual delivery on "Watch" is another fine example of KiCk i's forward-looking femininity, while "La Chíqui" is as brilliantly unhinged as a team-up between Arca and SOPHIE should be, with self-destructing beats and vocals that reach for the skies. These kinds of unapologetic contradictions and fragments coexist on KiCk i in startling, beautiful, and genuine ways, making it a complete, and triumphant, portrait of Arca's artistry.

The individual tunes hold their own, but Monovision is a record where the whole means more than the individual numbers, since LaMontagne strikes a very specific mood -- one that's reassuring, even soothing -- and then manages to sustain it until the end.

All of these cuts are loose, clever, and inspired, and they make for one of Lund's liveliest records.

The barebones numbers are solid and Townes carries them, but The Lemonade Stand truly kicks when it's at its poppiest, as on the exuberant "Come as You Are" and "White Horse."

It's hard to believe that after two decades together as a band Peter Bjorn and John are still making records as intense, energetic, inventive, and vital as Endless Dream.

Though it's very different from Dream Wife, So When You Gonna… is just as genuine, and the duality in Dream Wife's music only makes them a more interesting, and more relevant, band.