No matter which era or what record you prefer, as an album, Locked Down stands with Rebennack's best.

Cut the iffy pop off these 19 tracks and you're left with Roman's true four-star empire, but as it is, Roman Reloaded is a frustrating mix of significant and skippable.

New Wild Everywhere may not bring anything new to the table, but what It does bring, as is the case with the best comfort food, has been honed to perfection.

Even the lesser songs have enough catchy moments to rank Mouseman Cloud up there with any of Pollard's unending solo material from the decade preceding it, but the strongest songs leave one wondering what kind of masterpieces he could construct if he'd just limit himself to one record a year.

This is one dense and tight set, barely over half-an-hour in length, and it's definitely in contention for Muldrow's most focused, funkiest, and (somewhat ironically) personal release to date.

On In Between they ditch any SY trappings and go full shoegaze, removing much of the energy and dialing the tempos down to mid. It works really well, allowing the band to create a mood of wistful, well-produced melancholy that builds and builds until the album ends in a swirl of barely expressed emotion and guitar clatter.

Quakers is the kind of album where favorite tracks change from listen to listen, and a testament to hip-hop's enduring power.

Even with this change of tone, the album is still classic Shinedown, and though this kind of triumphant mood will probably disappoint fans looking for something to cut loose and pump their fists to.

Both Lights isn't always completely on the money.

Brain Pulse Music is the most traditional album Batoh has recorded, as well as the most radical and fascinating.

This is a harder and faster-than-usual album from the group, and yet there's also a heavier element of control throughout.

It's a swaggering, sexy, shake-your-ass, greasy, deep roots record.

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.

Had it not been for the underground releases, this disc would be one of 2012's best debuts.

This is the perfect type of album for people who think dubstep is too singular and great proof that there are still possibilities for expansion in the genre.

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.

This is a record that buzzes with ideas, it's giddy with the noise it makes, and once its initial rush fades away, it still has plenty to offer in substantive songs and sheer sonic pleasure.

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.

Happy to You is an album that aims for commercial appeal, so there is a noticeable push and pull between prescribed pop and the eclectic electro that the team is known for, but the songs that land in the dead center have a nice even balance.

Meshuggah have easily proven to listeners time and time again that they know their way around their instruments better than most, so even though Koloss isn't the band's most daring or experimental work to date, it's definitely worth any metal fan's time.

While it's true this album often feels like the listener is being asked to endure a personal confession without redemption as a reward that is also part of its hopefully deliberate, perverse charm.

The results should satisfy any post-industrial shaman with warm, slowly developing, and often cavernous synth soundscapes providing the welcoming base.

Noctourniquet highlights the more intellectual, esoteric sound the band has championed over the years, but even though the album soars creatively, it feels emotionally restrained.

In almost every way, Sees the Light is an impressive leap forward for Goodman that shows she's more than ready to make La Sera her full-time musical outlet.

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.

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.

With Sentenced to Life, Black Breath have crafted a no-nonsense slab of modern hardcore that draws from a diverse set of rules, but yields to none of them.

Christian Mistress' second formal release--and first full album, if one counts Agony & Opium as an EP--finds the Olympia quintet in even stronger form than before, the group's eager embrace of early-'80s metal energy and singing coming together with a bang once again.