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

Despite the gloriously odd decision to place Treasures--a piece of music as fragile as the materialistic lifestyles it attacks--first in the tracklisting, there are no real surprises.

With his debut, Styles manages to escape the notorious curse of former boy banders, turned leading men, creating an immersive, reference-fuelled tribute to classic rock for the millennial generation.

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

Clocking in at less than 33 minutes to ensure your left gagging for more, Sweet Heart Rodeo is a near faultless blend of Landes’ country roots and the urban savvy of her Brooklyn base.

The musical equivalent of a coffee table book this is a poised, polished album of covers and collaborations spanning a decade.

The outer edges of this album are impressive, but why couldn’t they penetrate the main parts of these songs and this album more? Instead, they are eye-opening but ultimately useless ideas that must make way for the dry 808 beats we’re all too familiar with.

Take both albums as separate entities and you'll be fine, and if alienation is the upshot, what a way to go about it.

Smart, soulful pop.

This schizophrenic album will frustrate purists and sate pop kids.

While some tracks do begin to sound alike, the effortless cool that drips from the more fleshed-out and established cuts provides Nosebleed Weekend with more than enough substance to make up for them.

The album is at its best when DeGraw’s chaotic textures give way to more structured declarations of despair.

The results are mixed, but what’s certain is that Mild High Club have broken ground and laid new foundations with their most nuanced and exploratory material to date.

While the pop-facing moments may not appeal to all, Tommy shows her dexterous talent and the extent of her creativity on ‘goldilocks x’.

‘Bleachers’ as an album symbolises the full-throttle shift from solo voice to its current form of ensemble unity; a band of six-talented musicians entering their most monumental era yet.

[The music] shows you the lengths he’s still prepared to go, criss-crossing in lo-fi and between human conditions.

The songwriting is strong, representing Selway’s best – and must sustained – burst of solo work yet. His innate musicality shines through, and there’s an endearing honesty to the lyrics that filters across the music itself.

Ultimately Soft Hair is the sound of two musicians filling in each other’s blanks while only seeing the best in each other. When it works, it’s captivating.

Simple, unaffected songwriting with a direct emotional pull, Falling Faster Than You Can Run is swarming with undercurrents, with nuances that only become more marked over time.

Denmark's Kölsch repeats the trick of 2013's '1977', hanging on the coattails of the EDM set with a less extravagant set of fireworks but with plenty of instantly recognisable and effectively crafted signposts and set pieces.

All of this seems like a nod to the work ethic of their DIY roots, but they often transcend this, knowing they could go on to greater things.

This year’s Pinned is its well-made product that checks all the boxes, successfully imitating the late ‘80s feel--the highest compliment in this line of work.

Nili Hadida’s first foray into solo music is fearless and successfully breaks away from her band dynamic, as it showcases her evolution and experimentation in developing a unique palette of brilliant sounds.

Third Avenue feels like a transitional project for Fredo, from his grittier street mixtapes to hopefully something more expansive. His inability to escape from his street-focused comfort zone is sometimes frustrating, especially when the project improves after he opens up later on in the album. But he gives us glimpses of a great project further down the line.

If anything, however, new album ‘Faith In The Future’ is simply too nice. The songwriting is sturdy and well-formed, leaning on his indie roots – you can hear ghosts of the Gallaghers, whispers of Chris Martin – without ever truly channelling something dangerous, or edgy. ... It just doesn’t raise the pulse, or quicken the blood-flow in a way you might long for.

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

With as many albums in this century as in the last, ‘Yeah Yeah Yeah’ finds Cast building on the momentum of the previous two years with both confidence and quality.

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