Often lifted by angular, bug-eyed guitars, Mush can’t help but approach matters with considerable levity. Hyndman revels in the irony of American patriotism being the product of KGB-controlled algorithms on ‘Bots!’. His cutting and sarcastic remarks are telling of one nation’s innate habit of being easily led.

Shifting their past into their present, this intensifies retrospective beats with the primitive passion that’s always been at their core.

She continues to rise above our expectations. Producing a sound that would comfortably fit alongside the greats she once listened to on her Walkman.

The most impressive thing about In League With Dragons is that it’s the 17th Mountain Goats album, and Darnielle shows no signs of running on empty. This is an album that should excite existing fans of the band. ... It also works well as a gateway for new fans as the songs are catchy, the music is well balanced and when the band hit that sweet groove its glorious.

Shorn of expectation and match fit in the middle of a long tour, four friends found each other again.

Ecstatic Arrow is kind of the sonic equivalent of the Barbican Conservatory, with its juxtaposition of undulating concrete and myriad verdant plants from across the world. And if you’ve ever been there, you’ll know it’s a very pleasant space.

A record of incredible depth, ‘Alfredo 2’ is a celebration of the art, a platform of excellence.

The variations aren’t as wild, but that doesn’t mean you don’t notice them, the Glasgow zeitgeist keeping things moving as a supreme technician (ever the perfectionist, this final cut apparently took five takes).

On each listen Love What Survives is a record full of raw honesty, both musically and artistically, and is worth your undivided attention.

When you listen to the albums back-to-back you get a better idea of who Autechre are and how they see the world. Yes, it is a wonderful place full of natural beauty and hope, but it is also dank and skittering full of people who only care about their self- interest and petty squabbles. Both of which Autechre have captured in exquisite detail.

Inevitably there might be some that call The Heavy Heavy overtly nostalgic but when they are capable of producing such beautiful and layered tracks, it is hard not to be swept along by the band’s tightness and breadth.

Here, we hear hints of funk, jazz, Americana and folk--and before you know it, the album’s ingrained itself.

There is never any doubt in her authorial voice and ability to commandingly tell her own story, with all the tragedies and triumphs contained therein.

MAYHEM does, however, re-connect Lady Gaga with a sound – and approach – she deserves to own. With the world growing darker by the minute, one of the planet’s biggest stars is ready to unroot pop’s foundations once more – and we’re totally here for it.

Titanic Rising harnesses convention and refashions it into something singular. At once a document of this “wild time to be alive” and an escape from it, it’s often remarkably good.

While it may be hard to place genre-wise, it’s not hard to see its quality and sense of ambition.

Sad, contemplative and euphoric in equal measure, The Most Lamentable Tragedy is a true triumph.

A beautifully crafted, nuanced record, bursting to the brim with ideas and not afraid to test the listener with its expansive sound pallet.

It’s direct, unflinching and explicitly pop: rarely have Slow Club sounded this full, this bold.

A conceptual album which feels honest and authentic, ‘Drop Cherries’ showcases the best of her musical ability while being lyrically complex – it’s another strong record for Billie Marten to add to her repertoire.

‘Laurel Hell’ is a big album that demands to be known, full of indie-pop wonders and most of her most moving ballads yet.

A fabulous album, confirming St. Vincent's status as a deeply talented artist.

Yes, it’s also chaotic and messy, but also catchy. This is not an album, or band, to sleep on in 2026.

Done and dusted in 35 minutes, it’s tempting to view ‘Wuthering Heights’ as a studio palette cleanser, a means for Charli xcx to fully divest herself from the ‘Brat’ era. Yet the music itself so much more rewarding than that definition allows – at times gorgeous, at others deliberately grotesque, it offers a series of dark gothic fantasies that inhabit a transformative realm.

While it might not be as cohesive as some of his previous work, ‘Is It?’ is a beautiful reconciliation, revelling in making something from a place of struggle.

All dark atmospherics and empty space, Jaar’s spectral production for collaborative project Darkside creates the void where rhythm, and seemingly time, are allowed to infinitely float on.

From the zany club outings of his 2010 to 2011 releases with Night Slugs to the more restrained and conceptualised LPs of recent years, each record has been a milestone in the development of this most remarkable musician--his latest album being no exception.

Their demons finally overcome, Peggy Sue are now revelling in true resolute defiance.