Her uncommon, even singular approach to singing, recording, and writing, remains fully in evidence here.

The album is a bit more raw than previous, so expect more fan favorites than hit singles. Otherwise, this is business as usual, and business is absolutely gangbusters.

The album consists entirely of songs begging for a singer that could give them their own personality, to which Michele and company respond by making every song louder than the last.

With third full-length Atlas, Real Estate grow even further into the sound they've been spinning for themselves, mellowing more while they become more nuanced in both playing and production.

The album is a well-written love letter to yesterday's rock & roll. Though this means the album's sound isn't nearly as revelatory as the sonic assaults of their earlier work, the Men continue to prove that, above all, they're a band that know what they're doing, even if they don't know what they're doing next.

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

Ten albums and 18 years on from their first show, the Drive-By Truckers are still capable of mixing things up and showing off new sides of their skill set, and that's certainly the case with English Oceans, which shows them making wise use of all their talents--not just Mike Cooley.

As with any meeting of pop and noise, Axxa/Abraxas can feel somewhat at odds with itself at times.

Without mellowing too deeply or becoming so serious that the songs aren't fun to listen to anymore, +/- turn in a fantastically studio-crafted album that communicates greater depth and more sophistication than any of their other work.

Damaged Bug is a celebration of the strange and often unstable world of analog electronics, and while there's considerably less "crash and bang" to the project than Dwyer's work with Coachwhips and Thee Oh Sees, it has a scuzziness that fans of the prolific noisemaker's other work will appreciate.

As a whole, Like It Never Happened benefits from its lower-budget production. It is, if anything, more imaginative than her previous albums.

As has always been the case, Transatlantic excel at making a four-piece sound like a marauding horde.

Doubled Exposure, recorded by Jason Meagher at Black Dirt Studios in upstate New York, has a rich, full, warm, and still live-sounding and edgy wash of grit all over it, and it is Speer's most accessible album yet, if accessible means one can't help being kind of fascinated by it.

Atkins has come a long way since her debut and without the distractions of a major label or a major break-up, she seems to be in the driver's seat and completely in control of her destiny, delivering her most artistic and confident album to date.

It's a sturdy, often absorbing record from a singer who is determined to be in it for the long haul.

Bluebird reveals Landes' healing process in emotionally raw, delicately crafted songs.

New Bums finds two decidedly specific songwriters' styles and voices mesh into something new and different. The combination results in a strange, haunted look into imagined desert scenes, cheap motels, and tales of depraved living, floating by on tunes so unassuming they disappear before the darkness ever truly sets in.

Exquisite stuff and not so far off the trip-hop universe that it sounds alien, but those wishing for revivalist music or a nostalgia trip back to the days of chillout rooms could be thrown by the album's forward-thinking and genre-expanding moments.

If greater success follows them, treading that line between creativity and audience demand will become harder to do, but for now, Milagres have succeeded in making a unique and ultimately appealing record.

Much like the trio's studio work, the set has a unique touch that seems happenstance and carefully plotted all at once.

The album does tend to be more engaging than stifling, as well as a little more graceful, than previous releases from patten.

The wonders never cease on this adventurous and street-tough effort, but they never sort themselves well, either, and with accessible highlights like "Blind Threats," "Break the Bank," and "Man of the Year" all bundled toward the end, this LP requires a surprising amount of patience.

As her most satisfying, artful, and accessible album yet, St. Vincent earns its title.

From front to back, Blank Project is riveting uneasy listening.

The way they join the organic and the electronic, the cerebral and the emotional on Close to the Glass makes it the most thoroughly rewarding and enjoyable album of the Notwist's career to date.

The album is one full of highlights, with a sad beauty surrounding it that makes these songs immediately deeper, more connective, and more exciting than anything Death Vessel has brought us before.

Present Tense isn't as flawless as Smother; it's slightly top-loaded, and occasionally the spare instrumentation borders on monotonous. Still, it's a compelling album that shows Wild Beasts can build on their breakthrough in satisfying and challenging ways.

Blue Film is an often unforgettable introduction.