Adjust to it being low-key, sometimes background music, and SSSS won't be leaving the average synth pop fan's headphones anytime soon.

Questions of semantics and authenticity aside, Port of Morrow's songs are compelling enough to keep most fans listening and enjoying.

The album creates a nice contrast between the pleasant melodies of the songs and the seething, dissatisfied lyrics that rest on top of them.

On In a Dim Light, Nedry never get as self-consciously slick as many of the bands that made trip-hop so dully tasteful in its later years, but they're still at their best when they're fully in touch with their volatile side.

Prisoner remains one of the boldest statements of intent from a fledgling act this year, and while it will be a little too intense for some, it pinpoints the Jezabels as one of the bands to watch from Australia's thriving indie rock scene.

Though there are a few missteps ... the document's strengths supersede them in a powerful and inviting way.

Breton sound more natural when they let their rock side dominate.

While the two don't always match up exactly in terms of presentation, by the end, Byrne's nerdy rock and Veloso's airy sonnets prove highly complementary to each other, especially in tandem.

Almost every note, lyric, and sound could have appeared on any Weddoes record of the past 20 years or so without any problem.

While Radio Music Society may play better to younger pop audiences than more die-hard jazzheads, this program is so diverse and well executed--despite a little overreaching--it's anybody's guess.

For all the people camping out in the cold, The General Strike definitely has enough fire to keep you warm.

As a starting point for One Direction fan memorabilia, for which it appears there is limitless potential for the time being, this is a perfectly sized, and targeted, collection.

There's no mistaking the more personal vibe here, and on the whole Silent Hour/Golden Mile offers proof that Rossen's songs can stand proudly on their own.

It's just accomplished enough as an amalgam--not entirely groundbreaking but definitely enjoyable as a collective reworking of impulses, with Wexler and a variety of guest players creating an enjoyable little treasure in its own right.

It's a pretty timeless approach that could have ended up sounding tired and played out, but the group's enthusiasm and Cunningham's ability to craft sticky melodies make it sound oven fresh.

In Ghostlike Fading is a low-key debut, full of mellow, worn-in songs replete with extended jams, guitar maelstroms, and harmonicas.

All this exertion leads to an excessively lean album: there's not an ounce of fat on MDNA, it's all overly defined muscle, every element working with designated purpose.

It isn't for everyone; it leaves questions of her versatility as an artist (though at this point in her career, it's not necessarily a priority); but most importantly, it's a singular, uncompromised vision that, in a world where the definition of beauty sometimes seems to be growing more restrictive, will resonate with listeners who prefer to find beauty in unexpected places.

This loose, adventurous collection of songs is more vital than many of the other overcooked projects that Rocket Juice's main players have been involved in during the 2000s and 2010s.

Hype warranted, the mystery continues, and while no kid should write "666" on their forehead before getting their driver's license, Odd Future remains a vital force in the hip-hop underground.

City Awakenings feels like it belongs to the short-lived era when Travis were the biggest band in Britain, but it's still a charming return from one of Scottish pop's unsung heroes.

If such an otherwise emphatic and melodic record is the result of such constant squabbling, then Blood Red Shoes should perhaps start planning their arguments in advance for album number four.

Free from vague thematic restraints, this volume works as the most immediately listenable and comprehensible of the Nomad Series and stands alone as another strong volume of the craft Cowboy Junkies have been honing for years.

Like all Stew's work, the album jumps easily from genre to genre, but all the tunes are marked by strong melodies and Stewart's dense, literary lyrics.

Our Version of Events is an earnest collection of works by a woman who is as good a composer as she is vocalist, a lethal combination in today's pop music business.

While it's sometimes a little too delicate for its own good, Mountain Echo is still a highly encouraging first offering which proves the Duffy comparisons don't do her any justice.

Oberhofer has imagination to spare, but Time Capsules II would benefit from reeling in a bit -- most of the songs are at least three and a half minutes long but finished saying what they needed to before reaching that time point, and as welcome as xylophone is on an indie pop record, hearing it on what feels like every song is a bit much.

Wreck ain't perfect but it certainly does the Unsane legacy ample justice and should satisfy most fans' hankering for sonic self-abuse.