As a whole, Crosby touches on a number of pleasing themes and sounds on Sky Trails, lending his sweet tenor and trademark harmonies to material of surprisingly high quality given his recent prolificacy.

It's chock-full of refreshing, sophisticated ideas, all balanced by an empathic, emphatic inclusiveness that engages the listener at both musical and emotional levels.

Que Aura is the richest, most diverse, and interesting-sounding album he's done yet, with the songs to match.

2017's ambitious full-length Emperor of Sand saw the progressive/sludge metal veterans delivering a heavy-hearted concept album about grief, and while Cold Dark Place's title would suggest an extension of that narrative, it's more of a loosely knit addendum that illuminates the latter outings' soul-searching proclivities by proxy.

The Centre Cannot Hold constantly seems on the verge of collapse, but it never descends into utter chaos. It gets abrasive and engulfing, but it isn't accurate to describe it as a noise album. Frost and his associates expertly harness levels of sheer energy, resulting in a brilliantly forceful, commanding work.

Relatives in Descent manages to sound more thoughtful and introspective than 2015's The Agent Intellect without sapping the strength of this great band; quite simply, as a bit of record-making, this is Protomartyr's most impressive accomplishment to date.

What follows is one of Ritter's loosest and most rewarding outings to date, delivering a steady stream of compelling characters caught between bravado and vulnerability, constantly trying to find their emotional footing.

Now feels fussy, as if every element was triple-guessed because the pressure to have a triumphant comeback was too great.

His mix of wistful tenderness and cerebral darkness plays out in the songs' twists and turns as he pits Bon Iver-ian robo-soul and folk gentleness against sometimes menacing basslines and frigid atmospherics. It's an approach that agrees with him on this strong sixth effort.

The spontaneity on this set is more akin to a live record than a studio effort, making it a most welcome entry in his catalog.

If Younger Now seems slightly scattered as it flits from song to song, it nevertheless adds up to a portrait of a pop star so confident of her swagger, she doesn't bother with such niceties as old-fashioned flow.

Overall, this is quite different (and stranger) than most Laraaji recordings, but even without his laughter or his autoharp, everything he does radiates positive energy, and this is simply another fantastic entry in his catalog.

Judging by how well they execute this pop/rock hybrid sound, Gossip is a risk that paid off.

Both fierce and fragile, Hiss Spun presents an artist in compelling control of the entire scope of her expression.

There is a sameness to the tone and tempo of many of the tracks causing much of the album to blend together, but if the whole affair doesn't quite reach the artistic highs of earlier releases, the band certainly make good on their soothing intent.

I'm a Harmony isn't the revelation that Parallelograms was, but it's not a letdown, either; this is the work of an artist whose singular creative viewpoint hasn't dimmed with time. She still has a great deal to say, and those who loved her debut will discover she hasn't lost her touch.

A deeply comforting album, Okovi is some of Zola Jesus' purest-sounding, most profound music in years.

Half-Light is a sprawling, passionate musical memoir; as far as remembrances of things past go, this one is remarkably forward-sounding.

Dedicated to Bobby Jameson is a weird, catchy, thought-provoking celebration of individuality that offers one Pink's most appealing balances of sugary accessibility and irreverent indulgence.

Stills and Collins have a gentle, easy chemistry and the studio-slick supporting performances provide a nice bed for a project that is less nostalgia than a reassuring reminder of the comfort of growing old together.

Longtime listeners will know the drill, but newbies looking for some frame of reference might want to imagine Sigur Rós, Mew, and Sunny Day Real Estate in an art school lunchroom brawl.

Omni deliver the songs with all the punch of a band twice their size. They beat the tar out of the sophomore slump and come away with another instant classic album.

Ray Wylie Hubbard is making music that's tougher, more effective, and better crafted than most artists a third his age, and Tell the Devil I'm Gettin' There as Fast as I Can is yet another striking example of his casual brilliance.

While some fans might prefer Macklemore with Lewis, Gemini is a reminder that before the multi-platinum singles, hit albums, and thrift shop threads, he could handle himself just fine.

While it's easy to admire the craft behind Forced Witness, it's a little harder to embrace the album as a whole--and not necessarily in the ways Cameron may have intended.

Taken as a whole, Communicating presents a multi-layered universe of off-center pop well worth exploring.

It's hard to imagine where METZ can go after pushing their sound and skills into the red zone as they have on Strange Peace, but with their third album, they've left no doubt that they're one of the most singularly powerful rock bands in North America, and you ignore them at your peril.

Not everything on V works--"Weighed Down" and "Gathering" lack the focus of the album's highlights--but the songs that do are some of the Horrors' most exciting yet.