Martha may be saddled with a name that doesn't exactly imply excitement, but one quick spin through Blisters is enough to dispel any doubts as feet start to move, pulses begin to race, and the part of the brain that compels one to sing along is stimulated in a big way.

While the album is not as fluid as BLACKsummers'night and has a couple frayed ends, it includes a high quantity of open-hearted ballads and variable-tempo jams that sparkle with indisputable power. Each one is supremely sculpted. Their decreased vocal smoothness and increased rhythmic friction are major factors in the set's allure.

Depending on listeners' patience, however, The Bride's slower second half may be hypnotic or dreary.

Only "Better When I'm by Your Side," which hews a little too closely to the Lorde template, does anything to darken the mood. It's a tiny stumble that does little to detract from the pleasing nature of the rest of the album.

With On Desire, the Drowners sound more confident and more in tune with each other as a band, but they still remain captives of their influences. They're evolving, but at a pace that may never yield any new fruit.

Sequence and flow, moods and styles, all form a coherent whole--albeit one that might have used a tad more judicious editing. But it's hard to fault a band for trying new things, especially when what they deliver is an album with far more hits than misses.

Even if The Magic doesn't always hold together, it still delivers moments of pure anarchic fun.

While Blues and Ballads is by no means Mehldau's most ambitious album, it's nonetheless a work of expansive emotionality and deeply hued beauty.

Friday Night is a stronger and more engaging work than Butler's solo debut, and the new songs suggest he should have something memorable next time he goes into the studio by himself.

Conscious builds upon the promise of their debut and goes well beyond with a tight vision of a glimmering pop future for the Notts.

The guys have grown up and the results are as catchy and enjoyable as anything they ever did in their youthful heyday.

Nobody else creates contemplative bass music quite like Mala, and Mirrors sounds fresh and inspired.

Consistently challenging and infectious at once, Black Terry Cat is the kind of album that comes along only once in a while, where bold goes down smooth.

Working with Leventhal has brought out the best in Bell, and 2016's This Is Where I Live is his strongest and most powerful work since the late '70s.

Droll humor is not Bazan's bailiwick, and in spite of some of Blanco's near-misses, it's nice to hear him put down the guitar and insert himself into less familiar environs.

On the whole, Otero War finds the group relinquishing a trace of distinctiveness while sounding notably more comfortable in their own skin.

Sure, there are a ton of bands pursuing a very similar sound and feel as Dolorean are on Muzik, but their style, the strength of their songs, the sweep of their melodies, and the strong emotional core revealed by their lyrics and vocals push them ahead of the pack.

Like its predecessors, Harvey's canny charts, arresting dynamics, and deliberate, reverb-laden production provide the glue for Delirium Tremens. Gainsbourg's work is now often recorded in English, but Harvey remains one of his finest interpreters.

Ibifornia comes with enough funk and cool from guest vocalist Cat Power that it could be the spiritual sequel to the Tom Tom Club's debut album, plus all the faux exotica, busy soundscapes, and chugging basslines suggest the Swiss duo Yello.

Some moments are so bleak that they could be titled descriptively as "What Does Your Witch House Look Like, Pts. 1-2," yet the whole thing sounds like it was created in a state of fevered inspiration.

The way the Kaplans juxtapose '80s fantasy and 2010s reality gives Autodrama's deceptively breezy music a depth and purpose that separates them from the rest of the atmospheric pack, and makes their return all the more welcome.

Far from being an album for wallowing in the depths of grief, True Sadness is a record about the emergence of hope.

Anybody looking for a straight-up document of Young & the Promise of the Real may very well be disappointed--all those pesky critters keep getting in the way--but Earth is better because of its inspired madness: the weirdness isn't merely a reason to listen, but it elevates the album to the status of one of Young's genuinely inspired nutso albums.

Ultimately, Thick as Thieves plays like a heartfelt love letter to Temper Trap's fans who have stuck with them since Conditions.

Given how good the Felices are at what they do, fans are still likely to enjoy Life in the Dark's rambling take on American roots music, but casual observers might find their minds wandering by the time the album makes it into its final innings.

The music is vigorously played and faithfully captured, but the Mystery Lights' identity seems a little too lost in time.

Not quite classical, though certainly not pop, Postcards From is a fascinating meditation from the soul of a traveler.

He doubles down on funk and digitally erased cultural boundaries without losing a specific sense of self or place.