Whether it's highly relatable or a bit paint-by-numbers is up to the listener, although the blueprint here is an auspiciously well-tested one.

GUV IV is yet more proof that no matter the genre or sound -- whether it's the band's beloved jangle pop or something further out on the indie pop spectrum -- they are up to the challenge and will deliver the goods.

From the puckish refrains of the lovely "Sunday Venus" to the intricate "Arm of Golden Flame," the two characters intertwine amid fascinating compositions that are intellectually challenging but ultimately rewarding.

It documents a gifted artist in full command of her gifts, and it's more than worthy of your time and attention.

Fueled by the long-promised light at the end of the tunnel after the COVID-19 lockdown, it's also the band's most vibrant and accessible outing to date.

Remaining in the same musical neighborhood as his debut, its sentiments were inspired by looking back at that transient time just before young adulthood, in his case in the early 2000s. ... That lesson in experience and optimism shines through dreamy guitar atmospheres on much of the record, including opener "Corncob."

A welcome new entry in PT's catalog, it reveals in fits and starts that the band have plenty left to say -- just what that is remains elusive and unclear on this wide-ranging return.

For her eighth studio album, Home, before and after, she animates ten unpredictable tracks with a combination of elegant piano accompaniment, overtly playful pop, and a return to dramatic symphonic fare, often within the same song.

By marrying this thick haze -- somewhere between shoegaze and analog drone -- to introspective, melodic songwriting, Soccer Mommy winds up with an album that feels simultaneously familiar and fresh, a record that delivers deliberate surprises while also acting as a soothing balm.

Though Danilova closes the album with the exultant "Do That Anymore," in its own way Arkhon is more challenging than her music has been in some time. Some of the changes she introduces don't seem necessary until they're heard, but they're all in service to her commitment to using sound in powerfully empathetic ways.

Ultimately, Vaxis II: A Window of the Waking Mind is stellar; it offers fresh, wildly creative terrain for the Amory Wars saga to mine going forward.

It's that balance Gray strikes on Superache between plumbing his own candidly intimate fears and simultaneously pulling together all of his musical influences into his own distinctive sound that lends the album such magnetic, transformative power.

'Flicted is bright and lively in its form and rhythms, its electronic beats and processed voices percolating cheerfully and impishly, his pianos interweaving with spectral voices to create shimmering waves of melody.

An album that is more cinematic than the intervening releases in more ways than one.

Mississippi Son is an unromanticized testament to living the blues and sounds like it came from the soil. As such, it's a late-period masterpiece.

There's a warmth to Up and Away that does suggest analog, with help from plenty of dreamy reverb and additional acoustic textures like Arabic stringed instrument the kanun, which serves to amplify the album's cosmopolitan flair.

Shearwater have crafted their most resolute, or shall we say Shearwatery, effort to date.

Honestly, Nevermind is a welcome development in the Drake saga, a left turn off what was starting to seem like an endless stretch of trap-heavy highway. The destination is still sad and self-involved, but at least the scenery is colorful and never boring.

Ugly Season is a powerful statement as both an album and a score for a dance piece, and its intertwining of self-expression and healing is peak Perfume Genius.

Deep in View is a sturdy, engaging, and highly listenable debut that feels less like a continuation of Ought and more like a new path branching off some of their best work.

On Ultraviolet Battle Hymns and True Confessions, the Dream Syndicate aim for mood and atmosphere rather than showing off their chops, and the performances serve the nuances of the songs without pushing them to places they don't want to do.

The language Halvorson constructs on Amaryllis is lush yet balanced and symmetrical. Her harmonic core, though fluid, offers a generous tonal palette for ensemble players and soloists alike, no matter who ultimately converses with who, while her melodies are simultaneously memorable, complex, and thought-provoking.

Belladonna is as lighthearted as it is provocative. Halvorson's love of wide tonalities and intricate harmonic interplay are anchored by sophistication and a healthy dose of wry humor. She weaves them together in five pieces that nearly sing.

Magic Pony Ride is more comforting than challenging, but it's still highly enjoyable, providing a unique view on family life from an artist who has remained inventive for several decades.

Where Womb felt like the closing of a chapter, graves feels like a promising rebirth for Purity Ring.

Mercury cuts to a deeper emotional core than the Range's previous work, and it's easily the producer's most successful release to date.

If 40 oz. to Fresno isn't the most ambitious entry in Joyce Manor's discography, it is at least one of their most enjoyable.

While the rap-preferring fans will still gravitate to his first two efforts, listeners with an appreciative ear for his genre-sampling maturation into the mainstream will find Twelve Carat Toothache to be a fascinating emotional exploration of a conflicted artist who can't help but churn out star-making hits at the expense of his own happiness.