While it's lovely to have them back, this album is more of a pleasant addition to the Mercury Rev catalogue than a defining moment.

What ‘Kehlani’s’ self-titled moment lacks in risk or originality, it makes up for in songs that explore the fullness of female/non-binary sexuality.

Is this new release going to blow any minds? Doubtful. Yet 'Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol 1.' sees these alternative figureheads finding their chemistry once more, whilst opening an intriguing new chapter. They've managed to beat the haters this time, let's just hope things remain cool in the SP camp.

The “highs” are as potent and heady as ever but ultimately, they’re ephemeral.

Longwave is a gently simple record but one which manages to exert an almost hypnotic pull.

This Party succeeds in merely rejuvenating, rather than reinventing, wonderful Wanda.

Soft, smooth and a breath of fresh air, if Liquid Cool is on the menu, I’ll have a glass too.

While not breaking new sonic ground, the broad brush strokes of nostalgia rarely wilt.

PersonA sees a band stretching their creative wings and expanding their sound far beyond the fireside jammage that created them and becoming a more respectable prospect for it. The sun worshippers have added dashes of shadow and are all the more interesting for it.

Fans may miss Wolf's habitual genre-hopping and eccentricity, but this is mature and compelling stuff. His best so far.

Lo-fi, yet simultaneously gaining glossed strength.

With 17 tracks this album could be expected to take off to somewhere fantastic but, although we stay very much on the same page throughout the duration of the record, the pristine production of A Moment Of Madness is faultless.

There's a clearly dynamism between the couple, resulting in a unified performance and all that lets them down is a weakness in some of the songs, where a greater commercial edge might have initiated more interest. Sophisticated Steel City pop.

Despite sometimes failing to embrace the originality that made its predecessors so popular, it has some exceptional moments.

Often melodically startling, the work contained therein feels close to definitive – if you’ve ever thought to explore their work, but not had the chance, this is the perfect entry point.

Maybe he (and it will be a he) should approach ÷ with more of an open mind, because it’s packed full of tunes that have an undeniable quality and mark the point where Ed Sheeran goes truly stratospheric. It’s less ÷, more conquer.

We are so here for Lauran’s honesty and the way tracks like ‘Mary’ and ‘Jealous’ and ‘90’s Kid’ are anthemic yet personal.

While there are moments where the concept of ‘Parasites and Butterflies’ is stronger than its execution, this is still a stellar outing for Nova Twins, once more establishing themselves as a vital and thrilling voice in the rock scene.

It’s less Nick Drake-y than Lay’s last effort, and it feels more self-assured and hopeful.

The self-described “cowboy gothic” leaves the album’s listening experience in a state of assurance that SPRINTS have not crumbled under the pressure of the success of their first album.

A bold attempt to embrace his contradictions, this is a project held together by the brutal strength of slowthai’s performances.

It retains the witticism and humble poetry that saw him crowned the beloved laureate of Fife, but there’s just a little bit of magic missing.

If ‘WASTELAND’ doesn’t quite match the hype then perhaps that’s due to the impact Brent Faiayz has had across his catalogue. An artist who commands cross-genre respect, his particular brand of R&B has been much-imitated, but never truly bettered.

The best tracks on 'Haram' come together with crooked production that twitches with sharp samples and cuts, and AH’s billy woods and Elucid filling the space with pointed flows.

As a stand-alone album, what Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter have created won't sate the disco heads screaming for more club material, however as an accomplished score it can only make a legendary film yet more cherished.

Despite its teething issues, ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’ offers Doechii enough dimension and versatility to cover all the bases, geared towards a spectacular live performance.

It’s the sound of someone holding a mirror up to themselves, a probing, insightful, often revelatory song cycle that revels in risk-taking.

Hot Pink is an album that knows exactly what it is, and it’s the work of a well-crafted hip pop star with something to prove.

His voice is something of an acquired taste but, this minor caveat aside, The Year Of Hibernation is a genuinely unique debut.

On first listen, this isn’t his certified rap classic but it does signal a turning point. Now, if only Drake could could distill the best parts of his repertoire into a coherent whole.

‘Bubblegum’ is the most creative, well-thought-out and simply fun project to come out of the UK alt-pop scene in quite some time. Biig Piig continues to improve, every release getting her closer and closer to the stratosphere – and even that won’t stop her rise.

An electrifying introduction to the future of the blues.

A noble experiment, ‘Digital Roses Don’t Die’ displays an artist willing to stretch, willing to take risks. He never names the source of his adoration, but the real winners here are Big K.R.I.T.’s fans.

‘Playing Robots’ finds Blake not quite knowing how to juggle all these facets of his personality and throwing them all at the wall. There are flashes of gorgeous phrasing, incredible textures, and welcome experimentation, but the album is also completely all over the place. Still, Blake remains undeniably talented as a singer, songwriter and producer.

Frequently unclassifiable, and never dull, ‘Again’ is a stop-sign on his perpetual onward journey.

Despite the few forgettable moments in the middle, ‘Scaled And Icy’ remains mostly strong in terms of sonics and lyricism throughout, and though it does end all too quickly it is an impressively cohesive production that doesn’t reveal even for a single beat that it was the product of long-distance virtual sessions.

With echoes of everything from PIXIES to Declan McKenna, what Lang lacks in refinement he makes up for in a very obvious encylopedic knowledge of guitar music. His ambition and obsession with producing more cosmic chords will, with no doubt, make his second full-length a more radical, enjoyable listen.

Ultimately, for those who find Travis Scott’s work to be style over substance, ‘JackBoys 2’ isn’t going to win them over. For those in thrall to the style, however, there’s much to chew on.

As with all their output, ‘Ohio Players’ is a few tracks longer than necessary (the cover of William Bell’s ‘I Forgot To Be Your Lover’ is superfluous) but otherwise finds the duo in spirited form.

Evelyn offers up the wiles and wisdom of a neighbourhood good guy, or more accurately, the distinction of an original Warp beat sage, providing contented listening caught lacing up a shelltoe.

It’s a declaration that cocktail hour is officially over, having also ditched any collaborations for this knotted beat scene bow, while still able to rise up in glory like sun pouring through a stained glass window (‘Tiptoes’) and sport the luminosity of a screwball gent just when you think the batteries are fading.

After an unimaginably tough year, Surfer Blood should reap the rewards of soldiering on. Inspiring stuff.

A solid return, there’s a lot to recommend here – for those familiar with Slow Pulp’s influences, or otherwise. Engaging songwriting with a real punch, we’re already looking forward to catching them live.

Despite the lack of progression from the first album to the second Take Control is a perfectly listen-able album--and perhaps album three will be where they shine.

As a whole, the album begins strong but unfortunately strays a little towards the end. Overall, Ali Barter’s follow-up to ‘A Suitable Girl’, is more than honest, more than genuine and more than just good music. However, it also has more than a fair share of missed marks.

If you sometimes need to reach for songs that make you smile, that deliver adrenaline or emotional balm, then you could do an awful lot worse than Everything At Once.

With 21 tracks on display, Lil Durk clearly has a lot to unload. He’s justified in utilising this length – he’s got a great deal to process, after all – but there are aspects that could be edited.

There’s a vision and attention to detail here that’s led to an decidedly individual record that, like a new love, shares a little more with you whenever you spend some time together.

The understated nature of the score makes it doubtful this will bag many awards or turn many heads but, never mind: grab some headphones and enjoy the ride.

SG’s talent as a producer, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist is undeniable, and it’s on these less predictable tunes where he demonstrates the extent of the originality and flair at his fingertips that he shows us his true potential.

Stars Are The Light is an aural journey, one which forces the listener to reconnect, or at least reconsider, their relationship with nature. In doing so, it encourages individuality and challenges one to break-up with the conventions of modern life.

It’s schizophrenic and really quite silly in places, Broke is never less than entirely entertaining.

Prone to playing one too many familiar games--the compressed vocals and the clunky convergence of beats ducking down--though as the sole Brit on Brainfeeder, you can’t knock him for being a team player.

The production is an expertly judged combination of radio-friendly pop and club-influenced, sparse trap beats. Iggy’s the real deal.

For a four-piece rock band from Texas, they still remain pretty difficult to classify and almost impossible to ignore. Play loud and enjoy.

Wanting more of something is hardly the worst criticism to be leveled at an album. With this long-awaited release, Santigold has once more shown the world she’s one of the game’s most unique, imaginative, and fun creators. It’s good to have her back.

Utterly lovely.

While ‘Leaving for Japan’ is a beautiful, delicate song with something of the Twin Peaks theme, ‘Don’t Follow Me’ and ‘Push On’ show, dal Forno is just as adept at creating drama from sparsely layered atmospherics and a forceful beat.

Though hit and miss, Brighter Wounds is a solid addition to the group’s catalogue.

With only a few elements, Kowton crafts expansive, diverse compositions that, while still being functional, take the idea of the dance floor in novel directions.

As palate cleansers go, ‘DON’T TAP THE GLASS’ does its job: a mash-up of shrewd and slinky dancefloor capers that dials back the conceptual overload and hits the reset button.

Typically rich, but this time, a playful outing.

This is enduring evidence that the purest, most interesting music inevitably comes without hefty production or marketing budgets.

It meets its pre-release hype head on, and comes away the winner.

To hear tracks like ‘Dizzy Dizzy’ or ‘Halleluwah’ hacked down to mere Can-ettes for the humble 7” format feels a little like trying to make sense of a vast painted canvass simply by focusing on, say, the top left corner. Once you get over that, with singles typically being the most accessible or marketable moments in a band’s trajectory, this collection represents a superb introduction to the Can catalogue for anyone lacking the willpower or patience to trawl their albums or the goldmine of material presented on 2012’s essential ‘The Can Tapes.’

Atmospherically broad, it moves from quiet sounding to the creation of something big and epic sounding. The emotional setting of each track changes a bit throughout, but it’s a record that is deeply connected.

Heaven leans into the cliché. It prompts us to think seriously about what it means for music to rescue us, sincerely, from the depths.

Despite the odd lapse in power, ‘Venom’ is a super-charged and dramatic record characteristic of Wargasm’s spirit.

Alexis Taylor’s vocals are always worth experiencing, blessed as he is with one of his generation’s most striking pop instruments, yet ‘Freakout / Release’ doesn’t tug at the heartstrings in the same fashion as ‘Flutes’, say.

As a whole Hurts 2B Human is not perfect. It is full of emotion and passion in certain parts, and yet devoid of it in others.

There is a deep sadness to every song here, Shah’s first studio set one that will either make you sink into a shadowy pool of darkness, or allow you to reflect upon your own sorrows in a melancholy reverie.

An unpredictable force who is unafraid to speak the truth, Lupe Fiasco merges the modern with the classic for another powerful project.

The most impressive thing about Chasing Yesterday is the playfulness that’s woven throughout it.

At turns utterly beautiful and thoroughly frustrating, there is no doubting the tarnished grandeur on display albeit tempered by some unnecessary navel gazing.

Thumping Mark Hollis-style piano and ominous scuttling backbeats add another satisfying touch to a recommended collection.

A bit of editing and self-control, and this could have been one of the albums of the year.

The anthems are still here, rest assured; they’re less obvious, but definitely no less compelling.

Scrappy but charming, Times New Viking's fifth album shows their dirty sound scrubs up nicely.

It’s sci-fi, afro, poetry delivered with a snarl. This may not be for everyone, hell, it may only be for the brave, but if you take the ride you’ll be vastly rewarded.

It’s a ridiculous, and ridiculously enjoyable, treat, a sign that rock and dance don’t have to be at odds with one another. Taken as a whole, ‘Typhoons’ is a daring evolutionary gesture, one that finds Royal Blood claiming fresh ground for the future.

The record is not without some brighter moments and a celebration of unconditional love on ‘Thread So Thin’ and ‘Your Side’.

It gels together so well that it is hard to find fault. Other than the album needs some trimming. A lot of trimming. Which is a shame as there is a fantastic album in there but navigating it can be overwhelming at times.

The end result is a rewardingly eclectic mix, if not slightly discombobulating.

'The Courage Of Others' is a suitable album for today’s perma-frost Britain, what we’ll make of it when the Sun comes out I’m not sure.

On occasion, it gets a little too pleasant, but, when the songs soar, it’s an infectious listen and, with the prospect of summer sunshine ahead, it will serve to soundtrack hazy days.

These twelve abstract and minimal tracks rather act as perfect soundscapes to accompany your dreams and introspections.

A fascinating record, ‘Archive Material’ is another impressive step forward for Silverbacks.

With greater room for booming electro-ballads and crisply produced dance numbers, Tenderness is more engaging than its predecessor but no less immersive, making it on the whole a hugely accomplished return.

The whole record feels like a big sigh, a huge outpouring of personal tracks or long running loves that she’s finally able to release right. ... If there’s one criticism 'Blue Banisters' will draw, it’s that it’s the same old same old in its sonics. Playing the same chords and singing in her same tone, this might be one piano ballad too far for less lyrically-inclined listeners.

It's hard to resist.

From infectious single ‘Ego’ and to sobering dream pop song ‘Connect The Dots’, his determination to look for solace beyond right and wrong is palpable. We believe he is riddled with guilt – and that is a testament to Solomon’s talent. By comparison, the second half of ‘Uneasy Laughter’ is almost void of internal conflict, even if it remains melodically accomplished.

After such a long break between official studio albums from the annointed one, it's nice to see that he's still shaking things up--not just giving us what we want.

It takes a special sort to do such songs justice with a mere acoustic guitar, but Marshall manages it. When things go electric, the ante isn’t upped nearly enough, however, and can’t help but pale compared to the frantic energy of The Hawks and Dylan fighting the audience.

‘Cyr’ is, of course, far too long and more pretentious than a Met Gala soiree, but the innate contradiction between the essence of The Smashing Pumpkins and the music they have decided to make does keep the listener engaged for much longer than it has any right to.

At times the clash of rhyme and sonic styles is too full or disjointed, sounding like the Boys are still finding their stride and working out how to cram everything in. Plenty here though to be blasted throughout Suburbia.

A kind of blue eyed soul take on the Basement Tapes, ‘Fat Pop (Volume 1)’ stands as further testimony to Paul Weller’s disregard for the expectations laid upon him.

A collection of pulsing synths, bouncing beats and empowering vocals, X-Communicate may have seen Kristin Kontrol strip away her former image, but it’s left the singer’s sonic presence stronger than ever.