While the trap state of mind may be a bleak one, it makes for a stunning piece of music.

This is an easy album to lose yourself in, but a difficult project to truly grasp. 19 songs, almost a full hour of music, a glimpse into a psyche that is frequently dominated by darkness; ‘Since I Have A Lover’ is 6LACK’s crowning statement.

Marina describes the album as “intricately produced” and that’s where the problem lies. Such attention to detail leaves some of the songs feeling pretty sterile and, as a result, it’s a frustrating listen.

Again Future marshals the glittering soundscapes expertly, his tuneful flow reining in the beats while imbuing all the fragility, heartsickness and aggression that make it the most impressive instrument in rap right now.

The concept of ‘Cottilions’ definitely deserves some applause. It’s a big, brave project for anyone to take on, and rather than disappoint or fail, it impresses, and in some places, it shines.

The speed-rock splendour of ‘Lowtalkin’’ put to one side, the band’s career prospects and longevity probably lie in the strained emotional hypnotism of the more muted, more self-conscious moments.

What we have in this album is a solid set of dance head-turners, but it narrowly misses the rubbed-raw rave charm of 2012’s ode to the 808, 'Transistor Rhythm.'

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

For the most part, it’s actually pretty entertaining.

While ‘Model’ might just be the fourth installment for them, it’s clear that growing up together has allowed the members to fully play in on each other’s best qualities, resulting in a no-skips record.

While Delorean captured the spirit of summer with 2010’s Subiza, now they’re aiming to nail the soundtrack to the end of it.

This album was crafted amid relative calm, and this peacefulness is present in every track.

It remains a fun and enjoyable pop record, even if its creators do seem more reluctant than ever to venture from their well established comfort zones.

‘Five Easy Hot Dogs’ isn’t going to win DeMarco any more fans, nor will it distract from his past triumphs. ... This instrumental offering will, like most of his tunes, act as great company for those who just wanna lay back and disconnect from it all.

Not quite as developed or controlled as its parent album, ‘Vapor City Archives’ underlines the sheer creative nous running through Machinedrum right now.

They’ve returned with their most thought provoking, strange and sexiest record yet.

There are moments where Dior shows his undoubted potential and those moments save this album from being completely mediocre, unfortunately, those moments don’t come anywhere near often enough.

The lyrics are as sharp and malevolent as they've been in ages.

Green Day have delivered possibly their most immediate album this century and an album that, despite its short length, grows more rewarding with repeat listens.

It’s immediately likeable, but loses distinctiveness later on.

Interspersed among the cheerful speed anthems are pretty, delicate moments that highlight the enduring songwriting bond that prevails between Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee.

This is a beautiful album that’s as absorbing as it is emotionally affecting.

It’s anthemic, eclectic and is a powerhouse of a record that feels like they are having more fun and giving a more ‘zero fucks’ attitude than ever before and we are here for it!

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.

While Innocence Reaches won’t go down as their best, it’s refreshing to see that Kevin Barnes and Co. are continuing to reinvent themselves with some of their most anthemic, accessible, and socially pertinent singles to date.

Where previous Colourmusic albums were spiky, unpredictable things, this set often feels content just to wallow in an amorphous sonic soup.

Bursting with promise, OK are more than their name suggests.

Pharrell isn’t raising the game on G I R L--it’s a thoughtful, imaginative unit-shifter with some sincere themes running through it. But “different”? Not quite.

It may showcase a cleaner sound, both in lyrical content and production, but its value for money at eighteen tracks comes at the cost of coherence.

While not entirely successful, this set’s spontaneity is its greatest strength.

An album that is often slight, and occasionally cartoonish. There’s a lingering feeling that not only can UK rap do a lot better, but so can Aitch.

This is a pop album with built-in replay value, a work of real depth.

‘The Fall-Off’ feels like his masterpiece, a classic right off the bat.

Whilst previous albums were energetic and exuberant in scope, Eve largely lacks the duo’s trademark vigour and moments of originality.

Throwaway fun, for sure, but throwaway all the same.

Lyrically fascinating, charmingly vulnerable and compulsively danceable--this is how to do a debut.

The misstep is in the execution, resulting in sound that bears little resemblance to their previous efforts. At best, Limitless is an overly ambitious re-invention. At worst, it’s a terribly misjudged collection.

No Mind No Money is one of those records which has the potential to evoke mass sing-a-long’s but is versatile enough to still be enjoyed in less boisterous settings--all whilst radiating a captivating warmth and comfort which ultimately will keep you coming back for more.

A jungle of genres, which includes an impressive throng of featured artists, from the moody and sultry ‘Ta Ta Ta’ which sees the somewhat controversial Travis Scott dip into focus, and infectious country bop ‘Change Your Mind’ which ushers in the likes of Shaboozey, to Rolling Stones rock icon Mick Jagger.

This album works best when those ideas are allowed to flourish and persist. When the arrangements get too embellished and full, they veer too far away from what makes Carpenter’s economical gestures so enduring, relying too heavily on virtuosity for comfort.

Despite the dark aesthetic of ‘Reborn’, the album shines bright with promise for the futuristic vista of Kavinsky.

A lot of Seasick Steve’s appeal comes from this good bloke aura, a bearded Buddha of the dustbowl, drawing in fans who might otherwise run a mile from his basic, grizzled music but there’s no denying the wonderful simplicity yet wholly enveloping of his music.

It’s a follow-up that interlocks with the debut perfectly, building on its foundation both lavish and coy, doing pop music that’s both bang on target and way too wise for the charts. A dot of light in the darkness that will dazzle you should you look too long.

An expansive work that fills no niche.

While it's undoubtedly a solid addition to Sean's catalogue, at the end of I Decided. it's the flows and instrumentals that are left with the listener, having upstaged what Sean is actually trying to say.

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

A glittering project that underlines Offset’s status as one of American rap’s MVPs, ‘SET IT OFF’ doubles as an emotional mirror, as a form of autobiography. All that glitters isn’t gold – and very often the finest moments on this album are its most humble.

Hold/Still conjures up the existential mood of floating in deep space. Lonely--but also out of this world.

There are a few points in the album where Lauv begins to take an interesting turn, only to retreat to familiarity.

Plunge through this piece of technical mastery and don't forget to take your shoes off.

There are sludgy, down-tuned power chords, there are whiny lyrics about how life is constantly unfair (reminder: Korn frontman Jonathan Davis is 45 years old), there is even that vocal tic where Davis sort of cackles like a disturbed demon.

Made on an iPad during the band's autumn tour of America, this hastily constructed, bleepy sketchbook of a record is a delight.

Here they've created a retro cinema soundtrack to an '80s sci-fi romance.

A bold gesture weighed down with excess, 'The Voice Of The Heroes' is a worthy experiment, one that feels destined to be a cult favourite.

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

Joanne is certainly not the all-conquering opus it was intended to be and will prove divisive, but it remains a daring and exciting record, delivered from one of modern pop’s most unique and singular voices.

This is an album self-assured in its odd-ball-ness, yet confident enough to step out into territories typically less habitual to it's maker.

It’s an imperfect album that still manages to shine with catchy singles and gratifying deep cuts, even if never quite reaches the height of its predecessor, ‘OK Human’.

There’s barely a convincing lyric in the album and by the end you’re wondering whether the title itself has been chosen based on the sheer novelty.

There's potential here--let's not entrust the future of rock to them just yet.

Simply a superb collection of beautifully captured moments and suggests that Mystery Jets are going to be making great music for a very long time.

The album is a fine document of why Wiley was, is, and will continue to be such a cornerstone of the grime scene.

Season High is a pleasant ride--a breezy escapade through dreamlands and ultraviolet meadows. It’s a sometimes sickly-sweet concoction that’ll leave you once or twice with the feeling of overindulgence.

At its best, Roaring 20s is clumsy and awkward. At its worst, it’s hectoring and condescending.

Concepts (‘Little Sis’, schmaltz aside, laments a distanced sibling), and grime-horned hammers (‘New Banger’, ‘3 Wheel Ups’ with Wiley and Giggs), put familiarly uneven album flow in a nutshell.

A mixed bag that's perhaps polluted with Toddla's inevitable fame and fortune.

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

On what is his tenth studio album, he proves why he’s achieved such longevity in the fickle game that is rap. Tracks such as 'Turnpike Ike' showcase the four-time Grammy nominee at his very best, while his willingness to delve into topics outside of his luxurious lifestyle add a depth and gravitas to the record that make it a worthy successor to the original thirteen years on.

It won't be everyone's cup of tea but this could well be a guilty pop pleasure for many.

Derulo has stripped away all of those oddities to focus purely on the music and, in the process, has lost much of what sets him apart from the pack.

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.

Far from dumbed down and more importantly, rap with a much-needed happy-go-lucky makeover.

Any trace of the identity that once set Foxes apart from other pop acts has been wiped clean. The album resembles a generic template, fashioned by several verified hit-makers, which could feature just about any old pop artist.

A stunning effort all-around, it is a pleasure to have Temples back, the prospect of where they can go from here is one of excitement and thrill.

With its sharply defined highs and curiously odd misses, there’s more than enough here for dedicated fans to sift through, to extrapolate new shades of Springsteen from. For the rest of us, though, there isn’t quite enough to hold our attention.

The grooves might be intelligently crafted, with plenty of interesting rhythmical quirks throughout, but the songs themselves hold little water.

It's nice to start off with but swiftly becoming a tad wet and ultimately a touch cloying.

At times brilliantly cold and clinical, it feels like an album created for a man-made future but with Lovett's soulful croon adding the humanity, you'll feel every heartbeat.

Therapy? have always exuded a commercial undercurrent and it's that ingredient that makes them compelling - equally now as then.

The absence of any high-profile pop vocal collaborations--save for Snoop Dogg on 'I'll House You', which playfully (and successfully) pays tribute to house music circa Dance Energy--and greater focus on the French house and techno that formed him, present Boys Noize at his most venerably accomplished.

It's a gem for Harcourt fans and the sweetest of introductions for new listeners.

Darlings is a concrete mixer full of ideas, although it’s tricky to pinpoint if Drew’s actually laid the foundations of a decent record.

For the most of Friends, though, this is White Lies doing what they do best. There are huge choruses, soaring, ethereal melodies and that distinctively glistening ‘80s production. However, you suspect their formula may need to be tweaked substantially if the band are to avoid self-parody or burning out in the future.

Youth is full of uncertainty, but one thing’s for sure: this four-piece have an impressive body of work to share with you.

A record that fits neatly in to the Maxïmo Park canon, while seeking to distance itself from it subtly.

In aping the sounds that made early rave great--hardcore, breaks and hard house--Vibert has sucked the soul from the genre leaving just a smattering of style. If this is an ode to rave, then it is a hollow one.

Tallulah is classic Feeder, and it is hard to think of anything more fitting for a 10th album.

With ‘Weather’ it’s Saint Sinner’s vocals that give the project direction; when these are stripped away on ‘Simulcast’, it’s up to the listener to find a way though, to draw the conclusions. And it’s these personal conclusions that make ‘Simulcast’ arguably a far more engaging and interesting experience than ‘Weather’.

Eight immersive and somewhat melancholic numbers that still evoke a great sense of calm. It’s a reflective record, made during a pensive season, British winter.

Tracing the lush synth lines running through this album shows Epworth’s love affair with the retro electronics of the 1980s. But their pairing with the sensibilities of modern pop ends up feeling less like the 80s, and more like last decade’s 80s nostalgia.

There’s no denying, though, that ‘LOOM’ does feel slight. In the era of weighty releases profiled for streaming audiences a mere 10 tracks does seem underwhelming – one song is actually repeated twice, but with added J Balvin for more impact. Far from a disaster, it’s an album that dares to be succinct, but also feels blunt.

In its pursuit of a more full, cinematic listen, the project is occasionally hindered by its sense of spectacle, struggling to form a genuine, consistent bond with its listener. Even so, 070 Shake illuminates a path that not many can tread with such confidence, an elevating spirit that pushes the parameters of her craft.

In the end, its sheer creativity and daring means that ‘SWAG’ (just about) justifies its breadth. 21-tracks of frequent daring, this Justin Bieber’s testimony, for better or worse.

We’re submitting this one for further clinical studies.

Angie Stone’s fifth album, is her strongest to date, as she delivers an LP that effortlessly combines the finest elements of Neo Soul with old-skool R&B.

It'd be unfair to tag Dreams Come True as merely a curio for Grizzly Bear fans. It's more than that--but only just.

While these musicians have no problem coming together to craft a solid, emotional record, the sound is far from being their own.

Scorpion might not be Drake’s most innovative work, but it does help to cement 40’s status as one of the best, and most consistent, producers of our generation, and sees Drake breaking ground commercially if not creatively.