Space Invader is the required retro return, one that's well-executed, from its '80s video game title to its mix of thick, singalong rockers and laid-back guitar show pieces.

Peace can feel satisfied that they've grown from their debut, if only marginally, yet it's clear they're still finding their voice amongst the joyous, optimistic melodies that are the basis of so much of their sound.

Over the course of the album, Sia tries to cover all the moods of the season: "Ho Ho Ho" gets into the Christmas spirit with gin, bourbon, and loopy cartoon sound effects; "Puppies Are Forever" could be from a children's holiday album; and "Sunshine" finds Sia helping a sad friend with heroic doses of Christmas cheer. However, some of the album's best moments tone down the merriment.

Yachty's progress mostly shows up in his drive to push his music to new places, but he takes steps backwards by overpadding Lil Boat 3 with too many similar, unnecessary tracks.

Reasonable Woman gets Sia back on track, joining Fear and Acting as one of the most compelling and listenable efforts in her post-breakthrough catalog -- a huge relief for anyone who thought she had lost her touch.

Just like any given Bone album, Khalifa's chilled and confused Rolling Papers is an acquired taste, and while it's misrepresented by its single and the mixtapes that surround it, it is purposeful mood music, perfect for bong loading or just hanging out.

Although instant, maximum commercial impact is no doubt the primary objective, the album does come across as more considered than the average Khaled LP.

Bigger Love sounds cobbled together compared to Love in the Future and Darkness and Light, two of his most recent and inspired albums, with opportunistic and unconvincing stylistic curveballs, no two tracks sharing the same production credits, and few clear standouts.

while the album may be about the band's View from the Bottom (whether that be career woes, the loss of a friend, or the bottom of a shot glass), as the title of the rousing set closer implies, Lit definitely got it "Right This Time."

Mr. Entertainment and his bombast do not disappoint. The Heavy Entertainment Show is his most invigorated album in years, a truer return to the pop realm than 2012's Take the Crown.

The whole point of doing acoustic versions is usually to lay bare the material, deconstructing it down to its roots, but for the most part, Acoustic feels a bit too polished and adjusted.

By the time she closes In Plain Sight's world of illusions and nightmares with the deceptively gentle "Harmless," she pulls off the trick of turning Honeyblood into a more cohesive, more imaginative prospect than ever before.

It's her first genuine step forward... probably the best record she has cut to date.

A pretty good modern rock record that will make Weezer fans happy.

The duets always seem like an intrusion to his musical vision, especially since everybody except Dr. John oversells these songs, singing like a cliché instead of finding their own sound. It's all the more frustrating because Nelson really does find his voice on each song here, a fact that's apparent on the three songs he has to himself...

Despite a bloated track listing and a mostly overblown concept, though, Trinity (Past, Present and Future) is an excellent statement from one of the most mature groups in the rap underground.

Jackpot is superior in every aspect.

The album is scattershot to its last breath, but the thrill of watching this hood star threaten to supernova is a real high.

Repeated listens help to sort things out, though, and the subtle shadings of Grrr... do become more apparent the more you listen--in fact, the album is a perfect example of the old rock crit cliche "The Grower."

Rather than nervy and isolated, this re-formed version of the band feels like they've got things more sorted out, replacing the uncertainty that marked albums like Emergency & I with a more carefree vibe. The change is one that makes sense, though.

Something for the Rest of Us is an album to play on the drive home.

Stay Together is undeniably upbeat and revels in its conviction to make you move.

Milian's weakness remains ballads; the few that are here are more like placeholders that merely apply some forced variety to the album.

Mos Def's second solo album is not disastrous, but it's a sprawling, overambitious mess.

There's a refreshing, devil-may-care cavalier attitude to Education, Education, Education & War that eradicates much of the desperation that was beginning to creep in after 2007's Yours Truly, Angry Mob, but it still doesn't change the fact that you've heard it all before.

What makes it a slightly better album than Rule 3:36, though, is the album's consistency.

The bottom line on Hello Waveforms is that it may seem dated to terminal hipsters, but for everyone else it is small yet exceptionally well crafted.

Those whose favorite form of Wheat is the aforementioned major-label effort, or even the elegant chamber pop of Hope and Adams, might consider this willful album an exercise in self-indulgent noise, but in the context of the duo's career as a whole, it sounds much more like a deliberate stylistic retrenchment.