While All Time Present moves through various moods and approaches, from Krautrock reenvisioned as rural guitar rock to floating ambience, it remains knowingly tied together by threads of dazzling playing and boundless exploration.

It feels like the turmoil of the late 2010s has galvanized Spiral Stairs into making his most direct and stylistically adventurous (which is a quite different thing than experimental music) music yet.

Epistrophy is a companion to Small Town, but it is also an extension of the intimate, communicative union shared by this duo in near symbiosis. Together they create a gold standard for live performance.

Wener treats the new Sleeper songs as a series of short stories, and that gives The Modern Age its true spine, helping it escape the clutches of nostalgia.

The Invisible Light: Acoustic Space is not comfortable to listen to but is nonetheless compelling, and arguably necessary.

An hour-long LP with little joy or even relief, one that is nearly static in energy level despite a carousel of producers.

V is a raucous, incendiary portrait of the band's maturity; it's creative and expertly crafted, an exploratory step further into an unknown that refuses to compromise or forsake its established sonic footprint or identity.

Glen Hansard has long been a gifted and effective vocalist and songwriter, but on This Wild Willing, he reveals a greater vision and intelligence in using the studio to give his music life, and it's an unusually strong offering from him.

Every track seems to hint at a grander version than what was delivered, but the loose ends and modest scale are alluring, since they appear to offer an insight into how this fiercely imaginative, quietly fearless singer/songwriter challenges herself.

Instead of distracting, Ribbons' tangents add to its masterful feel--at this point in Wilkinson's career, his music is so rich that he can bring any aspect of it to the fore in ways that feel equally natural and surprising.

Although it's only the first piece of the puzzle, on its own, Map of the Soul: Persona is a fitting celebration for a group at the top of their game.

It's a stunning debut.

The startling thing about Absolute Zero isn't that he's chosen to venture to the outer limits of his tastes, but that he's found the common ground between roots music, jazz, avant-garde, pop, and experimentation. It's this blend -- which is seamless, but quite dense, demanding the listener's attention -- that makes Absolute Zero seem to have depths that aren't easily fathomed.

The Hurting Kind stands head and shoulders above Beulah for its mature vision, powerful focus, and poetic songwriting and production. This is White's finest moment thus far.

Not every cut bristles with this sense of adventure -- there are still plenty of stark, plaintive ballads that provide the record with a sensitive, quivering foundation -- but by balancing their familiar backwoods brooding with fearless rock & roll, they've wound up with an album with a wild, twitching heart.

It's a record filled with good intentions but pitched squarely at the faithful converted.

While not a low in their catalog by any means, No Geography is also not their strongest or most memorable work to date. It's best not to call it a comeback, just another ample addition to their decades-long discography.

Ambitions is somewhat of a slow burner, but it's more cohesive and focused than meandering. Thomas has a masterful way of following his muse, and the album maintains a sense of spontaneity, as well as a casual demeanor, without sacrificing high standards of craft.

Brutalism showcases Pierce's knack for portraying the thrilling and terrifying sides of romance and juxtaposing joyous moments with devastating ones.

While they're too nonconformist to be a traditional punk band, they continue to define themselves as something more challenging and encompassing.

Martha's confessional and lovelorn themes fit perfectly in their revved-up pop framework. Love Keeps Kicking is a crystal-clear presentation of their powers, making equal space for the group's enduring stories of heartsickness, well-crafted pop structures, and blazing guitar work.

It Rains Love is a master class in the art of modern soul music from an artist who only gets better and wiser as he matures.

Although the songs were not conceived as an album and, therefore, don't carry quite the weightiness of some of the Jurado's most profound works, In the Shape of a Storm still seems essential as a showcase of his songcraft at its most elemental.

Left to her own devices, Tuttle has emerged as a deft songwriter with an open heart, a keen ear for melody, and a flair for pairing dusty folk with Americana-kissed country-pop.

Her intricate, folk-inflected indie rock has a more conspicuous, gentle jazz presence here.

It's steady growth all around for these fine Canadians who keep showing up with buckets of great material.

While all of Weyes Blood's albums leading up to Titanic Rising were good, even great, there's something that sets this one apart. Fantastic songs, meticulously detailed production, and a certain, hard-to-name spark of connection all gel into the near-perfect statement that every part of Mering's strange journey before this led up to.

Elegant, unusual touches like these suggest Facs are still finding new complexities in their music on Lifelike, an album that demands and rewards close listening.