Love Frequency sounds like a blended milkshake of ‘Experience’-era Prodigy and The Rapture, spiked with your upper of choice.

Catchy riffs and partying aside, this new FIDLAR record actually gets pretty deep.

Listened to while watching Georges Méliès suitably trippy sci-fi spectacle, it makes for a brief, but enchanting, experience.

Literate and honest, it doesn’t always connect, yet with 90 minutes of music to explore it’s a project that demands time and patience to truly absorb.

At times it’s sketchy and frail, at others decidedly defiant.

It's as much math rock as it is noise rock, delightfully unpredictable in places ('Weasel Bastard', 'Power Ballad'; and yes, the latter is the furthest thing from a power ballad you could possibly imagine), precise and purposeful in others.

Held together by a singular sense of purpose, ‘The Feminine Divine’ is at times daring, at others anthemic. Both puzzling and entrancing, it refuses to be hemmed in by past success, reaching out instead for new challenges.

The fact that I’m listening to this album on a gloriously balmy afternoon and am getting in the festive mood is testament to Legend’s conviction and the arrangements. However after 14 tracks, it does start to lose its way a bit.

Bar a couple of underwhelming or wholly unoriginal takes, 'The Metallica Blacklist' is a surprisingly solid listen considering its breadth. While the snobbier rock connoisseur out there might still view Metallica’s king-making album as when they ‘sold-out,’ this set just shows how malleable, how influential, and just how damn fun these songs still are.

After sinking your claws into this offering from PAWS one thing will become certain, their ramshackle approach to delivering scuzzy punk rock drenched in delicious distortion is enough to make anyone short of breath.

With one eye on America's rich musical history and one on the future of dance, if his formula needs to be tweaked, it is only by a little.

This is a splendid debut.

Having made the record about themselves, surviving under external and internal pressure and marathoning against the grain, Maria BC has spoken for all of us.

Perhaps less instantly gratifying than the shimmering ‘Zonoscope’, Free Your Mind is nevertheless a great time that provides additional rewards for those willing to disentangle its layered arrangements.

A fluorescent, gently psychedelic record with a fat vein of Eighties pop running through it.

Overall 'Self-Surgery' bristles with promise rather than complete realisation. As a raw one-off release it’s a breathless listen; the hope is, though, that the duo may return and build on this project in the future.

A reinvigorated set, it’s the sound of a band resurgent.

‘Describe’ offers a peek into life as a twenty-something, untangling the thorns of maintaining connections.

Catchy melodies abound in an eclectic, engaging effort.

Nutini reins in the melodrama, and Caustic Love is testament to that restraint.

Beth’s voice might be confronting at first, but over the course of the album the frustration becomes contagious, proving that anger is not something to be frightened by.

Some songs do pack a bigger punch than others, but at a brisk 33 minutes, the album never once outstays its welcome and even throws in a few surprises along the way.

Balance aside, ‘Get Up Sequences Part One’ sees the band doing what they do best, wading into an often cynical world filled with apathy and melodrama and detonating a glitter bomb - and you’ve always gotta love them for that.

As an album, it must be said, Gargoyle never truly coalesces. The distance between the bright, ethereal shoegaze sound and Lanegan’s dirty, earthbound voice is just too great to be reconciled (although 'Nocturne' does come incredibly close). But just because two compounds don’t mix doesn't mean they can't form something beautiful together.

Musically, the pop-punk sound has been largely abandoned (save for, perhaps, recent single 'I Don't Like Who I Was Then') in favour of something more forceful and nuanced.

Overall, ‘Ego Trip’ is proof that Papa Roach still have their finger on the beating pulse of heavy music.

Sleater-Kinney permit themselves a few self-satisfied experimentations – not everything comes off, such as the slightly wayward ‘Method’, for example. At its peak, however, ‘Path Of Wellness’ is a riot, one that underlines Sleater-Kinney’s hallowed status while providing a continual challenge to the idea of them as a ‘legacy’ artist.

Despite appearing torn between a middle-finger attitude and something much deeper, ‘333’ triumphs in never having a dull moment. It’s a document of character and expression while hopefully pushing forward to something more focussed.

Cat's Eyes is an impressive first outing full of sensuous dreamy atmosphere. Worthy.

Thr!!!er hits with a fresh, single-minded purpose.

Not everything here lands, and at times the raucous performances can work against the songwriting, but when it connects, this album is ready to lay a haymaker on fans.

‘Motordrome’ can be hit and miss. ... That being said, there’s a huge amount to recommend here. A clinical, finessed pop record, ‘Motordrome’ utilises its 10 track span to broach a number of fresh ideas.

Nouvelle Vague have created an album telling tales weaving in and out of the beautifully spoken French word and the English. Regardless of whether you understand what is being sung, easy on the ear and quirky sounds are enough to entice any listener.

Fragile but far from frail.

Luckily the album is the group's strongest and most enjoyable album to date. ... There are moments however when things quite work as well as on their previous albums, but these are the moments that are the most interesting and exciting.

Restless, furiously inventive and resolutely original, Tricky shows no signs of thawing just yet.

In the end, ‘Rocket Power’ isn’t perfect, but it’s definitely rewarding.

The only ‘new’ song is ‘It Might Have Been’. Here Young really leans into country vibes. Slow strumming. Lilting, falsetto vocals with a fiddle solo to boot. It’s one of the standout moments on the album and to finally hear the original version, after all these years, is a blast. All of the songs are slightly different to their original versions.

For 'Planet Her', there is a sense of predictability in that; if nothing else, you can expect a versatile project. Multiple layers mold the artist that is Doja, and as she is carving out a lane that is entirely her own, she is not afraid to be herself no matter how chaotic it may be at times.

Overall 'Dross Glop' may please and frustrate in equal measures.

Krell’s fragile innocence and tenderness remains as touching as ever, though, with a string of grand, sweeping numbers occupying the album’s heart that underline his power to galvanise the deepest depths of the soul.

While it may not be the East Atlanta rapper’s best, it still stands as a solid successor to ‘EA Monster’.

It may not even share the same ambition as ‘No Line On The Horizon’ however, it’s an undeniable improvement on their two misfiring predecessors, marking this collection as their most cohesive and heartfelt in almost 15 years.

Luckily her jaw-dropping vocal capabilities are enough to maintain a consistently thrilling album, and it’s this that makes Careless People worth the wait.

Element, and devoutly ambitious, it’s a record to be absorbed at its own pace.

Lacking both the complexity of the Super Furry Animals' playful psychedelia or the intimate warmth of Rhys’ solo work, it’s nevertheless an appealing curio and trailblazer in the small sphere of biographical concept albums.

Refulgent in tone, gorgeous in execution, the new album lingers on matters of the heart – a full four different songs have ‘love’ in the title. Still, nobody does it better.

For a band consisting of four members, Born Under Saturn is both remarkably adventurous and eclectic.

The album is a promising sweet-treat.

‘What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down?’ isn’t without its flaws. Sitting very much in their own lane, the group prefer to finesse – rather than overhaul – their sound, and as a result it can sometimes veer into the predictable. That said, Public Enemy never once let the energy drop, their raw sense of purpose intact.

If there’s a criticism to be made about Big Box Of Chocolates, it’s that while every track works on its own, often a song has a tendency to knock the course of the album as a whole off centre by contradicting its predecessor.

Those that are used to their favourite tunes packing an immediate punch may be left disappointed, but the time spent ruminating has clearly served them well.

The songs are well written with glorious instrumentation. Hansard is the owner of, well, a decent pair of pipes and whether he’s singing, crooning, bellowing or whispering you feel the emotion in this voice. The downside to the album is, well, we’ve heard it all before. There isn’t anything new here.

It sometimes feels a bit too quick, with most of its tracks coming in at or around three minutes in length. Overall though, hardly anything is forced and it all feels well presented and devilishly melodic.

The experience of touring, which she didn’t have at the release of her debut, is clearly heard in her bolder and more open delivery. Maybe ‘The Secret of Us’ is still not her Sour or 1989, yet she is firmly committed to making one someday.

'Air Con Eden' is an album that knows what it is: a story. Although it may be a surrealist story, something difficult to penetrate, it’s a delicate and genuine debut, filled with warbled and gentle soundscapes.

Avery’s evolution as a songwriter is plain to see on ‘Tremor’.

It's bonkers and wild.

Modern Nature is a significant step forward for a band dogged by being seen merely as Britpop survivors that have never really moved on. This is evidence that they truly, distinctively have.

This is a very strong album about love, written by two people who aren’t in love.

The amount of moments of contemplation away from the mosh pit benefits the listenability of the album, though its overall sequencing is blotchy and still more like a mixtape.

This is pretty simple club music solely about the 'now' of dancing. And that can only be a good thing.

Mogwai have come a long way since ‘Angels vs. Aliens’ in 1996. Gone are the walls of raging guitar and searing feedback. In its place is understated quiet and contemplation. This underpins KIN and really adds a grandiose dollop cinematic majesty.

A body of work dotted with pop anthems tied together by poetic, angsty lyricism.

If you are looking for a deliciously dark soundtrack of horror and funk, then ‘Danse Macabre’ should be on your Halloween playlist. The big question is – is ‘Danse Macabre’ for life or just for Halloween? Either way, for the majority of Duran Duran’s sixteenth studio album, in true Halloween style, it will be love at first bite!

Though Emerging Adulthood does push Croll far out of his personal comfort zone to a certain extent, it does feel like he could go further with the complexity. Nevertheless his musicianship is undeniable, as each and every instrument on the record is played by himself.

In taking this stripped-back approach, recognisable across the majority of the record, ZAYN lets his audience in more than ever before.

Playful and emotional if a touch polite, it's marked by moments of genuine greatness.

Sure, it’s not as good as ‘Turn On The Bright Lights’, but c’mon, it was never going to be. But as an exercise in getting back to where you once belonged, El Pintor is highly successful.

Lennox updates that balance struck between squelchy abstraction and clarity, which is--in the main--an immersive experience.

Although largely a strong body of work, the album’s borderline moments of geniune greatness--'Hate On', 'Dark Ear' and 'Mr. Mistake', the latter of which is surely the most sonically soothing track to reference a nuclear winter--aren’t replicated with any real consistency.

Always interesting, and with a deft use of traditional instrumentation alongside studio trickery, Fanfarlo have created another nugget of joy.

It’s a project that requires time to sit and grow with its listener, carving a new path after each and every run.

While at times lyrics can feel uninspired, and there is far less space-rock at play than previous ventures, there’s no denying that the tracks on offer are sharp and hard-hitting. A very solid release, and proof of why Muse are still held to such high acclaim nine albums on.

Jinx isn’t really a narrative anyway, more a fine assemblage in which a slightly eldritch weirdness is balanced with pop nous. It certainly feels like Crumb are on the cusp of something here.

The band’s expertly realized fusion of organic and electronic instruments remains, bolstered by their extensive tour diary that’s also seen them open for Underworld.

An endearing, and wholesome end for an album so wonderfully content it it’s own bubble.

Underworld refuse to heed their own advice, and the subtle juxtaposition of light and dark elevate Barbara from a decent listen to an enthralling one.

The album’s 14-tracks takes the listener on a mystical journey of hope, realism, racism and, eventually, the bright stars above. Unfortunately, with every shot of adrenaline and excitement that comes through tracks such as 'Obrigado', 'Mirrors' (featuring SnoH Aalegra and Cam O’bi) and 'Skip To My Lou', there are other that slam on the brakes just as forcefully, just as momentum and energy were building.

It’s best described as an album for escape- to leave the world behind, and encompass yourself completely in the emotive contemplation it offers.

Virtually every track stands alone fine. But listened to as an album, it's repetitive and numbing.

Littered with hyper-stimulants and the minutiae chaos of modern living, and where Ernest Greene, purveyor of faded daytime psychedelia, once spoke to romantic stasis from his internal landscape of unseen tropics, his diverting third effort sees him taking a heavy blow from reality.

DOOM, sparing on the mic, rustles up his usual funk finds with samples sprayed willy-nilly. Teenage sensation Bishop Nehru slots in; assuredly, naturally skilful, with the right amount of NYC, street cypher confidence putting up an all-rounder’s game.

With most of the numbers coming at you like a Doc Marten to the face, a change in tempo is appreciated on the appropriately named ‘Slow Burn,’ a wonky gothic riff adding some atmosphere before the inevitable loud chorus.

Each song presents itself as a story-in-miniature; a perfectly crafted beginning, middle, end (albeit sometimes the artistry of the track makes the listening experience more middle, end, beginning).

A credible effort though, with enough promise to merit an investment of anticipation.

The sound is typically dense but never overwrought with a wide sweep of styles and textures, The Orb being past masters at moulding a huge pool of raw material into a cohesive, listenable whole.

This latest offering is a finessed folk-rock record to bring a little taste of long summer evening drives to the glacial January gloom.

‘Rockmaker’ is an experience of the addictive kind, a fitting reminder of what’s terrific about the Portland band, and it offers something novel, something blistering.

The only shortcoming is that Machinedrum lacks a definitive singular angle, making him amongst the frontrunners of dubstep/juke interpretation, but not quite ahead of the pack.

Heavily indebted to ‘90s indie pop but never boringly reverential - it’s the sound of a band mining the past into a vibrant future.

In Mind, for all its charms and willingness to explore, mostly opts to bask in the lingering afterglow of Real Estate’s first truly outstanding record.

It's got piles of ideas, some biting M.I.A.-style hooks, and all the grimy vibrancy of a night out in Soweto.

His ambiguous and damning lament on modern England – as ever, left beautifully to our imagination.

Summer 08 is the banger-filled record Mount has always wanted to make, for fun, and we’re very much glad that he did.

Another truckload of ear-boxing drum kicks and chunky basses offer the same unflustered technicality and stewardship as Unbalance.

While Beast Epic doesn’t quite match the strength of those records, it still remains his most pleasing work since 2007’s ‘The Shepherd’s Dog’.

This is a sizzling and accomplished jaunt through the mind and talents of a British institution.