Millan's "plain jane" delivery may be occasionally sleep inducing, but it's comfort, not boredom that delivers the serotonin.

The Meat of Life might sound like "another Clem Snide album," but considering that it wasn't so long ago that it looked like this band was over and done, getting another serving of what these musicians do so well is more than welcome even if it doesn't break much new ground.

They resisted the temptation to knock out another collection of power pop and instead hibernated for a few years, eventually teaming up with Dave Fridmann--a former member of Mercury Rev best known for his production work with the Flaming Lips--with the intention of reinvention, resulting in the mildly bewildering Of the Blue Colour of the Sky.

The Whigs have zeroed in on their strengths and wound up with a rich, layered pop album that suggests a long, interesting future.

While in some ways Testing is more musical than anything we've heard from A$AP Rocky before, it's also more confused, with ideas and musical shifts colliding at times to the point of randomness.

La Petite Mort is a quality release and a welcome return for a band that refuses to sit down.

Davies still possesses a sharp eye and sly sense of humor, so Our Country has its moments, but they're moments, not songs, and they're overwhelmed by his clumsy dramatic pretensions, which are undone by his reluctance to tie his theatricality into an actual narrative.

It's fun, frivolous, and low on excess.

The Carpets have also crafted a set of songs as strong as any of the records they released in the '90s, which means this is a surprisingly effective comeback.

The productions--the majority of which involve Doc McKinney and/or Cirkut, low-lighted by maneater dance-punk dud "False Alarm"--are roughly as variable in style as they are in quality. When pared down to its ten best songs, Starboy sounds like Tesfaye's most accomplished work.

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.

2 Chainz is still a punch-line rapper at heart, but B.O.A.T.S. II adds some Bootsy Collins charisma and ambitious ringleader style to his discography. Pick the sequel over the original and get ready for some stinky, dank, and fun me time.

The constant repetition with more or less subtle shades of developing dynamic and texture in all but the last of these tracks creates a nearly endless groove. And perhaps that's the album's point, creating an album of dance music that's fun to listen to; a mirror image of Someday World's more carefully structured avant pop.

A display of complacency and retreads.

While Faces & Names lacks the same physical power as Soul Asylum's best work, the best songs here manage to sound comfortable, magnetic, and passionate all at once.

Paper Monsters is a competent solo debut, and although it doesn't stray too far from the Depeche mold, Gahan does manage to put his own stamp on the songs.

Still dour and humorless, but pruned of its experimental tendencies, Ministry delivered its first solid record in a decade.

This is a solid if flawed first try.

The Kickback is a cool, slick, and easy party for the most part, with the occasional ballad slowing things down a bit too much.

Those who shudder at the thought of a Dawson's Creek soundtrack should steer well clear, but loved-up fans of good old-fashioned singer/songwriter pop will find plenty to enjoy here.

While the album title suggests that Winston's talents may be less than genuine, King Con is never anything less than truly inspired.

[The last] three songs better illustrate what Kwes. is capable of as a producer and musician, falling somewhere between Thundercat and James Blake, in a cool blend of downtempo, dubstep, and R&B.

"Silver Lining" finds the group at its most savage, while exceptional moments like the anthemic, harmonious choruses of "Learned Behavior" and "Strange Comfort" balance the scales and help the Color Morale to reveal themselves as one of the most dynamic acts of the genre.

For those of you already caught in the band's spider web of eternal summer, this album delivers the goods.

Everything Infinite is an amazingly focused debut from a couple of guys who have already perfected their sound and give the impression that they could keep doing it for years to come.

It's definitely a step back in the right direction after the last album's stumble and stacks up to be their most consistent and enjoyable record to date.

Intimate, sensitive, and unabashedly vulnerable, Mama's Boy is far and away their quietest and most introverted affair to date, yet it adds a depth and substance to LANY's catalog that had been lacking from their usual feel-good Gen Z anthems.

These gangly excursions in rap are evidence of Sheeran's youth and his generation, something that keeps X from being merely a bit of excellently crafted mature pop and gives it some appealing character.